The Truth Between You and Me
by nyxie9
Summary: For Dean, it's far more than just another girl or another job when it comes to Mavis. The long awaited fourth part of my Supernatural Series! See what happens with Dean and Mae's saga. Dean/OFC
1. Chapter 1

The Truth Between You and Me

**Update-I got it in my head to revisit this story and I wanted to write it the way I had pictured in my head before I got discourage with it. So I'm rewriting and updating! Enjoy!**

Summary: Part 4 in the series starting with The Mercy of Fortune. You should read the previous 3 parts… they'll make this make a lot more sense. The Truth Between You and Me will take us into Season 2 and answer some questions you might have. Like why can't Mae get close to Dean, what happened between her and Bobby, who's Cal, and who's that woman Mae was seeing way back in Idaho? (See, you need to read those other parts!) Enjoy and remember, feedback is my fuel (that and coffee!)

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><p>Things had not gone as planned. Not even close.<p>

Mavis Singer had not expected to find herself at Dean Winchester's bedside in yet another hospital. At least last time, he was conscious, he quipped with her, he was there. This was worse than watching him accept what was happening. That was somehow better. Dean wasn't here now. It didn't seem like it anyway. Sitting in the room, holding his hand and stroking his knuckles with her thumb, the room felt ominously large and claustrophobic all at the same time.

He was _supposed_ to die last time and had they not taken him to the faith healer and his misguided wife, he would have. It was possible they could find something like that again but not in time. It made her sick giving into that notion but this was not a forgiving life. Sam believed, beyond belief, that they would find a way to save Dean. The doctors said there was too much damage and it would be a miracle if he pulled through. Miracles were not the way their luck ran. She didn't think they could pull him back with any sort of witch doctor or faith healer or anything else.

Regret was in no short supply. She should have told him she loved him earlier. And now she wouldn't have that chance. It would not have been impossible, she knew, to reproduce the spell, and bind death. Sam wouldn't stop her, might even try to help her. There were a number of spells and rituals she could think of to work on him and while he might have survived, he would hate her for the price. So this time was worse. There would be no 'get out of jail free' card.

Dean wasn't looking so hot right then. Her heart twisted and stomach knotted. There was something perfectly perverse in this. Mae knew deep down, there probably wasn't a happy ending for them. Ultimately, they would have to watch each other die if they kept hunting. And that was the best they could hope for. But she thought at least they would be better.

They had a long enough list of personal issues to deal with that didn't revolve around the other person dying. And she hated that she was angry at him because he'd asked her to stay behind. If she had gone with them, maybe she could have helped Dean. She felt a nagging reminder that she could have been worse off if she gone with them. She might have been killed in the accident or torn to pieces by yet another demon.

Knowing that and being reminded of her earlier conversation with him didn't make her feel any better. It didn't make it easier to see Dean like this. She knew if she had gone with them, she could have at least tried to do something rather than sit and have awkward conversation

"It can't end like this Dean. You know that, right? We haven't even… we haven't even gotten to the good part. Don't leave me."

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><p><strong>~Weeks Earlier~<strong>

"Hunting?" Of course hunting, she thought to herself, "I—I don't know."

He asked her to come and hunt with him and Sam. It was a simple enough question, one that had a straight forward answer. Yes or no. That's what Dean was looking for. Technically, he was looking for 'yes'. When it came to Mae, he didn't seem to have a lot of grey; it was all black and white for him. Given everything he was willing to believe and everything he understood about her, it baffled her to know that he saw only one sure fire solution.

Now Dean was not 'a planner' but nature. He didn't exactly have a game plan. The man went with what his gut told him, instinct and it worked for a hunter. There wasn't anything that worked better for a hunter. But it made for a lousy boyfriend. Or whatever he was to her.

Maybe he wasn't looking to hook up. Maybe he just wanted more hands for the job. It could have been either of those options or anything in between. The only thing she knew for certain was that Dean Winchester had a plan, not that she could figure out what it was. Sex, work, friendship, love. They tiptoed around something that fell in between. Calling it love would have been easy too, too simplistic a definition. Of course she loved him, he loved her.

That did not serve to simplify anything between them. Pairing that with their undiminished physical attraction, it was hard to tell him no. It also made it difficult to say yes. So his request which seemed simple on the surface was impossible to answer with any certainty in her voice. If they had been on the phone, she knew she could have figured out a way to deflect. Maybe that's why he waited until she was trapped.

Trapped wasn't the right term. He hadn't trapped her. She was the one who wanted him here in the first place and she was the one who wanted him to stay. Mae knew it sent mixed signals but only because she was confused herself.

Now they were lying side by side and she couldn't stand the feeling in that dark room right then after she told him she didn't know. It was, yet again, a horrible turn of phrase. Her words always seemed to come up short when it came to Dean. She knew how he would take it. Anything other than a resolute yes would be taken as a rejection. That wasn't her intent, not in the least.

"Damnit Mae," Anger flared, just slightly. She could be the most irritating woman; he knew that much would always be true about her. Most of the time, her stubbornness didn't bother him, occasionally he found it endearing but not when it came up against something he knew was right. "I thought—I thought we had agreed to see where this thing goes. I can't do that over the phone or by seeing each other every once in a while. That's just crazy and I don't want any part of that."

"Hey, that's not what I said." She sought out his hand, took it in hers. "I didn't say I wasn't willing to try. I want to, I do. Even though I have no idea where this goes or… or any of the rest. All I said I didn't know. And that's true. I don't know that right now is the best time to run off with you. If you're asking me pack up and head off with you boys tomorrow, I'm not ready for that. I don't want to say no but I've got to take care of things at home before I take an extended trip with the two of you. Also, shouldn't you ask Sam about this?"

He wished he could make out more than just the silhouette of her head. He wanted to see what was in her eyes right then. Rather than feeling angry now, he just felt frustrated. "I guess… I just want-"

She pressed her fingers to his lips. "You want things to be like they used to be or like you thought they would be. I don't know that they will be but I'm willing to give it a try. I need to be practical for a second. Gimme a week. I don't need time because I'm unsure; I need time because I have to take care of a few things. After that I can go on any number of crazy hunts with you. If Sam's okay with it."

Dean frowned, pulled her hand away from his face. "Why wouldn't he be?"

It was a little naive on his part, she thought. Or maybe it was a streak of selfishness. Either way, she wanted to tread lightly because even though this was about her and Dean, Sam was involved too. Quarters would be cramped and tensions could run high, even without the tumultuous history she and Dean shared. "I don't know. I know you need to check with him."

There wasn't a real reason he could come up with that didn't involve walking in on them having sex. Other than that, he couldn't think of a good reason Sam would have to not want her with them. "He likes you. You're like a big sister."

"And while I know he totally digs being the little brother all the time," she said sarcastically, "just find out if he really is okay with it. We did not always get along when we were all jammed together growing up. Maybe that's not what he wants right now. I don't want to cause more problems so… just make sure."

Dean sighed. It was the one excuse she could make that was sensible and he couldn't come up with a good way to gloss over the issue. Frankly, he didn't see any other way to get his way on this. "You annoy the hell outta me, you know that?"

She smiled, a little. She had expected more of a fight, more resistance. Maybe he really didn't want to fight anymore. The may have gotten to that place they had been longing for, searching for and were so desperate to find again. It made her want to come back. She still had a handful of fears surrounding this but it gave her hope. "You still want me."

"I guess that really proves I am crazy." Leaning closer, he pressed a kiss to her mouth.

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><p><strong>~Now~<strong>

Her expression was atypically grim. Exhaustion etched her face and those icy blue eyes that could bring his blood to a boil were puffy and lined red. Her hair was pulled back from her pale face in a pony tail that she had nervously raked her hands through so many times it was only a pony tail in theory.

Seeing her at his bedside wasn't a shock; it was as comfort. Seeing himself on the other hand… well, it wasn't the first time he had been unsure of what was really happening. His brother and his father were there too.

He wished he could revel in the brush of her hand through his hair or her hand on his. Because of the look on her face, he wanted even more to offer her some sense of comfort in return. He could only pass his hand through her shoulder, causing her to shiver. Maybe she could feel him or at the very least sense him. She had to be clued into a little something going on. If he truly were a ghost or something similar, she had to know.

If she did, she didn't really show it. Maybe she couldn't right then. She spoke soft, heartfelt words to him and he couldn't do anything to make it better for her. Closing her eyes, she pressed his finger tips to her lips. "I don't know if you can hear me but… I need you back."

His last brush with death had re-focused her perspective on the woman. He realized that there was more between them than he expected and that his feelings ran deeper, more intricate than anything he assumed thought. It didn't always make it easy for either of them. Her instincts tended to pull her one way and then the other and his was to pull her close. Of course, in the complex mishmash of hurt, betrayal, distrust and fear was a great deal of affection, loyalty and even love.

There were a lot of things she was willing to face head on and it took him a while to realize this wasn't one of them. Her real feelings were more terrifying to her than ghoul, demon, or monster.. He had come to embrace those feelings quicker than she had. He was more than willing to overlook the transgressions of their youth for the hope that they would find even a sliver of their old relationship. He didn't put it into those words, he didn't even really vocalize it like that but it was clear. The man was insistent on it when he didn't have to be which meant it was something he genuinely wanted.

It shouldn't have taken this for her to come into that same mentality. There was nothing she could do with it if Dean died. Although, she reminded herself even if she had told him all of her feelings before, they would still be in the same spot. She might feel slightly less regret but she'd feel no better about the situation.

Putting his hand back on the bed, she reached over to brush his hair off his face. His brownish blond hair was so soft right then, clean and un-styled. "Dean, you know, I didn't get the chance to tell you before but… I do love you. I don't if that makes a difference to you. If you can hear me, if you can believe me…" Her voice broke and she ran her hand through her hair, "Come back to me please. I still need—we still need you."

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><p>AN- Is that enough of a teaser to keep you interested? Hopefully it is! Comments = love


	2. Chapter 2

The Truth Between You and Me

Chapter 2

Disclaimer- Still don't own the things you recognize, only borrowing them!

This chapter starts out during Hell House. Enjoy!

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><p>One week. A week. 7 days. It had never felt so long, so unbearably long. Waiting wasn't exactly what Dean Winchester was known for. It wasn't exactly what he enjoyed and it wasn't what he wanted from her. Mavis Singer. It was entirely possible that she was a witch or a succubus or some other demon type entity, considering how he made her feel and stranger yet, how he acted around her.<p>

That was what he wanted to think, at least superficially. He knew she was just a skinny redheaded hunter, one he was madly in love with. So he honored her request because he knew he didn't have any other option. If he pushed too hard, he'd lose it all.

And she was right, he decided, a week or so wouldn't hurt him. Maybe he'd get hit by a truck and be able to have that final gratification of proving her wrong. Despite his feelings around the idea, it wasn't the worst thing. He would just have to face the awful feeling of missing her. Damn, did he ever miss her.

At first, it wasn't because the case was stressful; it was more annoying than stressful. Frankly, those Hell Hound boys, while irritating had been amusing. The prank war with Sam was downright fun. Because it was fun, he thought more about her. He recalled, back in the day, she could pull a prank with the best of them. She was better company than Sam sometimes and he would have enjoyed having her there, if only to lessen the tensions.

Dean called her a handful of times. He had to, just to talk to her. He felt like a 15 year old around her all over again. The biggest difference now was they didn't have to keep their flirtations secret, they didn't have to sneak around. That left him swinging wild and more than a little off-balance with the woman. He didn't have any bravado to fall back on. He couldn't tell her some suave lie that might get her into the sack. No, he was out of his depth this time and could only fall back on his instincts and the notion that Mae reciprocated his feelings.

When he called, he wouldn't have said she sounded eager to talk to him but she wasn't angry or even annoyed. She sounded distracted but he didn't have the nerve to ask her any in depth question about it. Dean would ask her how she was, she would ask him how he was but they didn't go into any great explanation. It wasn't unpleasant. Actually it was friendly for the most part but it wasn't the whole package he wanted. He did not want an acquaintance.

During that job, every time he spoke with her, he wanted to ask her to come to Texas as fast as she could drive. The case wasn't that difficult and he could never say 'I want you here because I miss you'. She might have come for that, possibly. If he was just honest with her…except she had been honest with him when she asked for time. So he didn't ask, not then.

Strangely, he didn't ask her to come to Fitchburg either. That was for entirely different reasons. He actually told her to wait once he realized why his dad had sent them there. She had been ready by then, eager to join up with him. This was his chance to be uncomfortable, nervous, and ill-equipped to be with her. That wasn't quite right, he _wanted_ her to be there but he couldn't ask her to come.

There were a lot of things he could tell Mae; this wasn't one of them. At least not over the phone. Nothing Sam could say or do could assuage his guilt. Killing that striga helped some but it wouldn't have been as satisfying with Mae's help. Frankly, having a woman with them could be helpful when it came to dealing with kids, parents, anyone who might be threatened by two strange men. It might have been cleaner but it wouldn't have helped him fix a mistake. It had to be something he did, something he made up for and he had the feeling Mae would have done almost anything to help him.

When it was over however, he wanted to see her again. He wanted to talk to her. The oddest part to him was the want to smell her hair. She didn't point out that asking her not to come might have seemed like a punishment. Mae could have assumed that much. If their positions were reversed, he would surely feel that way. But it wasn't like that at all. Maybe she didn't understand why but she respected it. Perhaps, he thought, this was what a real relationship was like. Not necessarily the distance but the give and take

She told him she'd be ready whenever he was and if he was having second thoughts, that was okay too. If he needed anything, all he had to do was let her know and she'd be there. There were only two other people he knew who would offer that and considering that his father wasn't as reliable, it meant something that Mae could be.

Sam and Dean had left Fitchburg. There wasn't reason enough to stay and Dean wanted to put as much distance between him and that place as quickly as possible. Plus, meeting Mae would cut down on the time he would have to wait. She gave him an ETA, it wasn't any more difficult or convoluted than that. He was half expecting to hear her put him off again but she didn't. After everything, he thought, it came down to something so impossibly simple. It made him want her all the more.

Now, he paced nervously, hoping it wouldn't show when he saw her. If she showed, that annoying voice in his head corrected. Having reached the rendezvous before Mae had, he had too much uneasy energy, leading to more and more doubts. This felt like a greater gambit now that they'd found a motel and gotten a room. Two rooms.

While it might have been an over eager gesture, it was the most strategic move he could make. At that point, he wasn't really sure. He couldn't plan her reactions or what would happen at this point. There was too much of his emotion, his own hopes and his own insecurity tied into it. Fortunately, he'd left his brother in one room, leaving him to argue with himself in Mae's room.

They were only about 45 minutes ahead of her. He thought he had never seen such a welcome sight as the lovely redhead. Mavis Singer was a tall woman, slim and lanky with a decidedly firm and trained body. Always slender, she had an undoubtedly female form, one that was inexplicably enticing to Dean. Even in jeans, a t-shirt, scared boots and a well-worn leather jacket he found her duly eye-catching. Her shock of red hair swept over her shoulders and framed her pale face.

She didn't look like a hunter, not at first glance. If you spent any time with her, you might not pick it out either, not if she didn't want you to. The woman certainly played up her innocent and delicate features when she could. She could just as easily swing the other way, experience would fill the slate colored eyes making them hard and much older than her. They would become chillingly analytic but he much preferred the heat that filled them when she was eager, excited, or happy.

Somewhere in there, he liked to think there was a look, an expression reserved just for him. It just wasn't this one. She was getting out of a truck, offering the drive a smile and even a short conversation. One duffel bag was slung over her shoulder and she retrieved another from the bed of the pickup before getting a medium sized case from the cab.

From his position, peering out the motel room window, he couldn't make out who the driver was but found the idea of her hitchhiking to meet him incredibly unsettling. She could have driven and they could have figure out what to do with her car if they decided to all got together in one.

Because Dean was Dean and his concern for her outweighed his trust in her judgment. Actually, it wasn't her judgment he didn't trust; it was every man who would pick up a pretty girl like Mae and why. He thought she could probably handle herself with almost anything. Mae was no damsel in distress but he sure as hell was going to try to be a knight in shining armor when it came to her.

He stepped outside but kept his distance from her when she caught sight of him. With a curt nod, he stood cross armed and watched her. That face-a face that was made of more angles than soft curves held a pleasant smile when she finally turned to face him full on. It was a most sincere smile, the kind that reached all the way to her eyes. She closed the door of the truck and waved the driver away without incident. .

Yes, she was the person he wanted to see more than anyone else. With ground eating strides, he crossed the parking lot. He didn't let her speak; he barely let her take a breath before he took her up in his arms and kissed her hard.

Now this was the way she liked being greeted by him. He was an amazing kisser. Actually, he was kind of amazing in general, she thought. He made her feel lightheaded, not just because she needed to take a breath. Everything slowed then and she was just with him, all alone. There was nothing else that mattered in those few minutes. His arms were tight around her waist and he wasn't ready to let her go. Her duffle bags swung against him from the motion of picking her up and that mysterious box was pressed awkwardly between their bodies.

All of his worry dissolved. He felt calmer, happier and more at ease than he had in some time. It was insane how right things felt right then. It was so familiar to kiss her, to hold her and it quieted the voice in his head that told him he didn't need this extra hassle of letting someone be close to him.

She pulled back. His eyes mirrored hers she suspected, heavy with excitement, lust and perhaps more than a little love. Dean let go of Mae, disentangling his arms from under her coat to run his knuckles over her jaw line. His hand lingered longer than necessary.

"You okay?" She whispered.

Clearly, the woman picked up on the insecurity he had felt earlier and may have been reflected in his eyes for a second. "No, I'm fine. I just…" he took a breath, sharply, "it's just good to see you."

Her bright smiled came again. "Yeah, I picked up on that."

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><p>The room seemed impossibly big right then and bigger as she moved around. He was hovering, he knew it but Dean couldn't stop. He should have been a little smoother, showed fewer signs of desperation. But having touched her, kissed her, smelled her and having the chance to be near her left him wanting more. She didn't mention it, she didn't ask him to leave; she was busy setting in. It was a reassuring act to her, not one of practicality because they would be moving soon.<p>

She needed to clean her weapons anyway but it was more than that. Her hands didn't shake but she thought they might, she was that nervous around him suddenly. There was little to lose at this point, besides the things she hoped would manifest. He was….right there. Perhaps he thought she would have second thoughts and leave without telling him. Or perhaps… perhaps there was something else. Either way, it unsettled her for some reason, leaving her with a disconcerted air.

Besides, the man was a distraction. Somehow he was more handsome now. His hazel eyes bordered on that hypnotic green, his face was smooth and freshly shaved and he smelled very masculine. His presence set her senses on high alert and made every motion, every movement he made register so much clearer for her. That left her edgy in a situation she thought she would be. This was supposed to be a joyous reunion rather than an anxious one. She was supposed to feel that sense of peace she felt while talking to him on the phone.

Asking him to leave wouldn't alleviate that feeling and she knew she would call him back in no time. And that would have felt weak, predictable and somewhat pathetic. Besides, she didn't really want _him_ to go, just this particular feeling.

Dean broke the uncomfortable silence. "We have…" he gestured towards the bed, towards the array of handguns, rifles, knives and a number of other items she had spread out there, "equipment you could use."

"C'mon, using someone else's tools is just…" she said with a soft smile as she finally looked at him again, "I'm particular to my own. I know their weaknesses, strengths, you understand."

He nodded and watched her for a few moments longer. He could have let her go about her own business and logically, he knew he should have but he couldn't bring himself to leave her. Ultimately, Dean took a seat on the other bed. "This is weird. Isn't it?"

It stopped Mae's distracting motions, for a moment anyway. Her sigh was light, layered with a number of emotions but not the sort that worried Dean. Eyelids fell over those lovely blue eyes of hers with relief. "Yeah. And I don't know how to un-weird it."

While he didn't have a long list of solutions, he had one. Actually, he only had one. It was the one thing that made him comfortable around her but he didn't want her to misconstrue it. So, he reached across the small distance between. He took her hand in his, running his thumb over the ring she still wore. The ring she hadn't removed since he asked her to put it back on. His fingers twined with hers and he held her hand.

His hot green gaze slid from her face to her hand. Her hands were petite, feminine hands but were also strong and calloused in all the places you would expect a hunter to have callouses. Her nails were bare, short, plain but well-kept and her skin was soft and warm against his.

Touching her helped. It brought comfort and ease to him. The butterflies in his stomach stopped their restless movement and the increasing pace of his pulse was because of the need to touch her more. He wouldn't tell her that, in the unlikelihood that she didn't know about it. "I'm going to screw up. At some point, whatever we decide we want to do, I'm going to screw up and say something, do something or…anything. I'll screw up."

"Okay? Dean, I didn't say that or suggest—"

He squeezed her hands reassuringly. "I know. I'm just saying I'll screw up, you'll screw up and I know any number of things will come up that could make us want to go back to our old ways. That's not what I want. I don't think that's what you want either so can we just agree to see where this goes and fight when we have to fight?"

Her brow furrowed and he was amazed that she could make confusion look nearly adorable. "You want to fight, about what?"

Dean just smiled, brought her hand up to his lips and he kissed her knuckles. "Nothing, not now. I don't want to act that a fight is going to shatter everything. I mean, we've made it thought this much and while it hasn't been awesome at every step, there's still something here."

"Yeah," she said quietly, "there is something. It's just different this time."

"So, let's just be ourselves, okay? No trying to make thing easier out of a sense of… politeness or because we don't know the right answer."

She let out a laugh- half tense, half pleased. "And here I thought you were going to suggest sex as the way to unweird things."

There was a scintillating passion behind the amusement in his expression. "Hey, I wouldn't rule that out. You never know what's gonna help."

They both grinned and Dean tugged on her arm to bring her sitting next to him. He leaned in and kissed her cheek. "Jesus Dean, you make me feel like I'm 15 again." She said as the color rose heavily on her face.

"When you blush like that, you look it."

Mae shook her head, still smiling like a damn fool she thought. This was more like what she expected. She felt lighter with him, she felt… right sitting next to him. He ran his fingers through her hair, letting his fingers ease along her jaw and down her neck.

She closed her eyes and sighed, letting her head hang down before two strong fingers lay on the side of her jaw, angling her up and over towards him. The beating of her heart matched the beating of his and her breath fell into synch with his easily. It was a ridiculous notion, he thought, that for a brief instance he felt as if they connected even deeper. It must have been the buildup, the waiting and the heightened bond with her. He kissed her again, it was slow and lingering and grounded the pair in the moment.

Mavis made him unexpectedly nervous. Not nervous exactly but unsure. Unlike most women, he didn't have the same level of bluster, poise, or ease interacting with her. The redheaded hunter was not more beautiful, sultry, seductive or experienced than any other woman. Perhaps she was less of all of those things than some women he had been with. But she was familiar. That might have been the key piece right there. She knew him. He knew her.

All of the ploys he might have used to get her into bed were of no use. More importantly, he didn't just want to get her into bed. That was why she might have been uncomfortable, he thought. It was the part that made him a bit uncomfortable. Dean Winchester had never encountered a woman whom he wanted the way he wanted Mae. As much as he wanted her physically, it didn't seem right. The moment just wasn't right. Still, he let his hand rest on her leg as hers cupped the side of his face.

He looked into those steely blue eyes filled with an intoxicating mix of nostalgia and innocence. The longer he looked into her eyes, the more a little bit of sadness crept into them that he never wanted to see there again. He saw that thing, an indefinable thing, that he knew meant she was once again having second thought. He cut her off before she could say anything.

"Listen baby, I know you could lay down a line of excuses, explanations and reasons why we shouldn't be together. Maybe you could even talk yourself into believing them but I don't think any of them would matter even to you because you feel whatever this is."

He was probably right. Because she liked to pretend he didn't know her, she didn't want him to be right. More than that, she couldn't explain to him what could happen if they jumped into this. This was not something she wanted to screw up and she did not want to hurt him again. Her feelings for him betrayed her because she found herself unable to hell him what she thought she should tell him. It was only right. That's what her conscience told her but unlike Dean, she knew this was a fight that could destroy that delicate balance. "I know how I feel but just because it feels right doesn't mean it is."

"Bullshit. That's just bullshit Mae. You just said you wanted to try."

Again, he was right; she did want to fix things and she did want to come up with some sort of excuse. That was her challenge and she thought she had worked through most of it. Now, sitting with him, kissing him, touching him, she still felt it. She shook her head. He was pushing her a little faster than she was comfortable with. He was right, she did feel something for him, something that she didn't entirely understand. "I know it sounds crazy, I know I sound crazy and… I'm sure you think I'm crazy."

"No, I know you're crazy but I like crazy. What's all this about really?"

She paused and gathered her thoughts, the best she could. "Between the two of us, hell between all the hunters you've known, how long has anything good ever lasted? I don't know what I'd do if you died. But," she continued before he could object, "I'd figure it out. Now if something happened between us and we lost our friendship again, I don't know that I would. Having you back in my life, as tumultuous as it's been, has changed things for me. I don't want to go back."

"What if it works though? Mavis, after everything, I still love you. I don't think a lot could change that, not for me. If you think otherwise, that there's a reason you stopped loving me, that might be cause but I don't think you did, did you? I think we can deal with the issues between us, I think we have to because otherwise there's no point."

A part of her agreed, the part that didn't want to run or fight this. At least this time, it told her doubt to shut up. This time, she leaned in and kiss him. Mae was always a little surprised when he kissed her with that nearly timid but quite gentle touch of his lips to her. He asked for permission with that waiting gesture. She knew the possessing and all-encompassing way he could have with that wicked mouth. However, right then that thought left her less moved than his very real, chaste kiss.

What sealed the deal for her however was the way his fingers skimmed up her jawbone so that her could hold her face and the way his eyes closed, enviously long lashes resting against his cheeks. He was committed to this. It wasn't a ploy and she realized how much he wanted her. He wasn't just interested in a quick fling, which she had more than once wanted too. He wasn't just interested in working a few jobs with her and going for a beer. He honestly wanted to date her. Or whatever the hunter equivalent of that was.

"Dean," She pulled away from him, "wait."

"Oh Jesus, it is like you're 15 again!"

It made her laugh as did his slightly frustrated expression. "Are you really sure you want to get mixed up with me all over again? I mean, I'm a hunter. I'm not particularly a nice girl."

"If I thought that any other woman, on the face of this earth could possibly make me feel the way you do, I wouldn't but hell you're one of a kind Mae. Besides, who said I'm interested in nice girls."

Her fingers pressed against his lips lightly and she smiled. "Okay then I uh, I need you to do something for me."

"What's that?"

It was a moment of honesty, a moment where her reservation and fear went flying out the window but if she were asked, she couldn't describe why. All she knew was that if she waited, she'd chicken out. In the moment, she let her heart do the talking this time. "Don't let me screw this up because-"

Particularly amused, he cut her off with a laugh. "You do know I've met you, right? I've, you know, noticed how you've been acting the past few months. I'm not completely clueless and I won't say I get it but…I can cope with your crazy."

"Right well… I'll never ask you to do this again and if you remind me, I'll deny it but if I've got my head up my ass, let me know."

He pressed a kiss to her forehead. "I can do that."


	3. Chapter 3

The Truth Between You and Me

Chapter 2

Disclaimer- Still don't own the things you recognize, only borrowing them!

_If the jumping back and forth is confusing, this chapter focuses back on 'In My Time of Dying'._

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><p>Dean watched her, watching his father. With her arms crossed over her chest, she stood in the corner, not making much sound or an impression. It was possible John could have even forgotten she was there. Mavis was unnaturally quite Dean noted. Well, she was quite for him but he knew she was out of sorts when it came to his father. It was somewhat comforting he thought, if he was telling the truth.<p>

Not that he wanted her to be uncomfortable around his father forever but it reassured him that what happened between them wasn't likely to happen again. She wore an expression he hadn't rightly seen on her face and the decided it was hopelessness. Actually, he had seen it one other time that he recalled; when she had been nearly paralyzed after being impaled on that fence so yeah, it was hopelessness. And he hated being the cause of that look in her eyes, wished he could reach out to her someway and tell her he was going to be fine.

It wasn't supposed to end this way. There was a certain irony in having asked her to stay behind because she might get hurt and a small sliver of regret that he didn't listen to her. Having another body in the fight might have helped, might have saved their dad from getting possessed and might have saved him from ending up in that hospital bed.

All the same, he wouldn't trade places with her. He didn't think he could deal with sitting by stand bedside wondering if she would die. The worry mixed with tension over her face and he hoped that she wasn't right this time. Because there wasn't anything to do to help reassure her and he turned his attention back to his father, who was just a silent.

The demon had told him things, things about Mae and their past. Things she hadn't told him. Was he lying or was she? He knew the parts about the way she tasted, how she had wanted his dad to have sex with her that night, how she didn't care about him, all of that was just to get under his skin. But the baby, how her husband died, well that was harder to chalk up to just a demon trying to screw with him. There was something that seemed too true about it.

His concern for Mae shifted into annoyance, anger at his father. He could forgive Mae for her reaction; after all, she had stepped in once and tried to save him. She and Sam found that faith healer. They had tried. But his father… well, he was his father, he was supposed to have the right answer every time.

"Come on, Dad. You've gotta help me. I've gotta get better, I've gotta get back in there. I mean, you haven't called a soul for help. You haven't even tried. Aren't you going to do anything? Aren't you even going to say anything?" Dean walked around the bed where his worldly form was trapped. "I've done everything you've ever asked me. Everything. I have given everything I've ever had. And you're just going to sit there and you're going to watch me die? I mean, what the hell kind of father are you?"

Dean heard something, something neither John nor Mae had heard, just like everything he had said to them and his questions. He checked with them though, perhaps they had but like so many times before, his luck didn't run that way. There was nothing for him to do but to investigate, leave the other two hunters genuinely alone.

Now Mavis knew her physical presence in Dean's room wasn't really keeping him here, it might have just been making her more insane by reminding her that this was serious. But when John came in the room to sit with his son, she couldn't move from her sentinel post. He didn't asked her to either. He just sat and she stood. At long last, the redhead moved from her position in the corner, pinning John Winchester with a chilly stare. "What are you doing here?"

"Excuse me?" There was sternness in his tone, were circumstances different it might have made her reconsider her more defiant stance or back down. But this was Dean and she wasn't seeing John act like it mattered. Now, because her issues with him didn't focus on his parenting, she didn't assume it was simply his selfishness as his youngest son had.

"What are you doing here John? I mean… are you letting him die?" Emotion twisted her voice and despite her best efforts to strong and defiant, she couldn't keep her voice from breaking at the end. It was only a matter of time before she started crying if she let herself focus on that.

Whether she was trying to hide her feelings or not, she was totally transparent. It was touching because after all these years, she was still a caring person. John wasn't always sure that he was. There was a touch of innocence and naiveté in her request too because she still believed he could save the day. "Mae, I'm not sure what you and Sam think I can do."

Her eyes closed and she sighed as a few tears made their way down her cheeks. As much as should accept that Dean was dying, she still couldn't be okay with it. "I… I'm not pretending that this is… I know the reality of things, okay? People die. I know that Dean..." She couldn't say it. She could barely think it but John knew what she refused to say.

At that's she turned away from him to look out the window. To cry. It broke her heart and yet… she couldn't explain the strange feelings she was having. If she didn't know better… Frankly, she didn't know better and she couldn't explain it but ever since Sam had called her, even before that, she felt off. She was tied here for some reason.

John stood and turned to put his good hand on her shoulder. It drew her attention but didn't startle her or cause her to shirk away. "Do you love him?" he finally asked after looking over her pale, damp face when she turned her head towards him.

This wasn't the first time he'd asked her something similar but it was the first time he had asked both directly and compassionately. It was an odd question she decided and didn't make sense to her. In the past he hadn't cared about the exact nature of their relationship, as long as they weren't stupid. When they hadn't even managed that, he had hoped they were aware of the consequences of their actions.

Through all of that, it never came up if they loved each other. Even now, Mae wasn't certain that he would care or why. "Do I—what does that matter?"

"It matters," he said softly.

When he said that, with a tone that came more from a father than a disciplinarian, the hurt, deception, confusion and bitter feelings that left her defensive started to ease. "I… John, this isn't about me and Dean. This isn't about-"

"Do you love him?" He tried to ask rather than demand.

Maybe she didn't really know if she loved him or not but he suspected she was just too ill-at-ease to tell him. While he had sympathy for her, he didn't have time.

Her mouth quivered before she closed her eyes. "Yeah…I just haven't told him and I don't know what— but I love him."

He shushed her. "Then trust me."

"Trust you? What the hell does that mean?"

Because he believed her and because he wanted his son to be happy, he offered her what he hoped was a reassuring smile as he squeezed her shoulder. "You love my son, that means—that's means more than anything I could ever give him. So trust me that I'll do everything I can to save him."

It was a more heartfelt confession than she was expecting and did nothing to stem the onslaught of tears. Experience told her however, there was something more to it that just paternal concern. "What-"

He leaned in, cutting her off by pressing a reassuring kiss to her forehead. The gesture too her back so far because he used to do that when she was a child, maybe 7 or 8 and one of the nightmares that had been so common during her youth had woken her up. It stopped the tears this time but more from the way the memory slammed against her rather than real comfort. "Stay here, he needs you more than I do."

If he had planned that moment, she would think in retrospect, it was brilliant. That one move did more to keep her from arguing or fighting back or even pressing him for more questions than anything else could have. Whatever he was planning, and she was certain he was planning something, was going to stay his secret.

"For what it's worth Mavis, I'm sorry for… well for everything that happened, everything I couldn't stop."

"Wasn't your fault, not really. I—can't go back. What's done is done. Best we can do it to move forward and hope we don't make the same mistakes over again."


	4. Chapter 4

The Truth Between You and Me

Chapter 3

Disclaimer- Still don't own the things you recognize, only borrowing them!

_This one takes us back to Provenance!_

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><p>~Then~<p>

Halfway between Wisconsin and Montana landed them in Jamestown, North Dakota. It wasn't a particularly exotic location to meet up but it was big enough to take care of basic necessities like laundry and stocking up on supplies

Sam was taking care of the laundry, probably to get away from the hormones flying back and forth between his brother and Mae. So, she and Dean were in her room, cleaning guns and sharpening knives. It was a task both of them had done since they were kids. Easy, familiar, and calming—the perfect activity to quiet their nerves and keep their hands busy.

"So, where are we headed next?"

How it was that she looked younger and more innocent inspecting the barrel of a sawed-off, he wondered with a quirk of his lips. "Don't know yet. Figured we'd head east until we get something on the hook."

"That's as good a plan as any I suppose."

"We'll hit the road in the morning and trust me Sam…he'll but up at the ass crack of dawn. Because he has no respect for the sanctity of sleeping in."

"Early bird gets the worm and all that." Mae smirked, well aware of his dislike for early morning wakeup calls and having them defended with clichés.

"But since we don't hunt worms, I, for one, would like to sleep to 8 for once."

"Oh please," she laughed, "the odds are better you'll get laid the later it gets."

"True enough I suppose. You don't meet my kinda woman power walking. And I'm just trying to prepare you for the joys of traveling with Sam Winchester. But that does leave us with all afternoon and evening to finds something to do. However can we entertain ourselves?"

The suggestive waggle of his eyebrows and grin could only make her laugh. That lusty heat that was there was politely subdued and playful. "You're like a dog with a bone."

"Damn straight."

"I will give you this; you're certainly the only man I've ever known who'd so blatantly proposition me while I'm literally surrounded by weapons."

"Obviously, I'm being a gentleman considering how you soft balled that dog with a bone thing in."

With a soft sigh, she paused cleaning her gun. "Listen Dean, I'm not…I'm not a prude or anything here but I'm just not feeling—"

"It's okay." Dean had known she probably wasn't going to get her into bed on the first try. She'd made it pretty clear that she was uncomfortable with this being just about sex. That didn't mean that he wanted to hear her reject him. "Honestly, I'm out of my depth here. Normally, we'd be…well if you weren't naked by now, you would be soon. I'm just…you know…"

"If you were someone else, yeah, I'd be right with you. That would be so much easier. I would love to just get sex out of the way but…it feels different, doesn't it? It's not like I'm not interested. I guess I just need some time to ease into whatever this is."

"It wouldn't be different. This isn't exactly our first time together."

"You're gonna make me say this, aren't you? God, it sounds so…girly, even to me. But it's not about the sex. Okay? It's not like I'm opposed to a fling or even a casual friends with benefits thing. With someone I don't have… well, I have feeling for you so it's not as simple as I'd like it to be."

"Wow, that was maybe the most upfront you've been about how you feel. Short of telling me you're head over heels in love with me."

"You just have to ruin the moment, don't you?"

"Usually. But I get it. I guess. You realize though I'm still gonna hit on you like nobody's business. On the off chance that it works even once."

All things considered, she found him incredibly charming. It was mostly because he was being honest, a bit forward perhaps but honest. Both aspects were nice. And it left her feeling more conflicted.

"I'm going to kiss you now Mavis."

"If you stop calling me Mavis, I'll let you."

Dean reached across the gap between the two beds so he could place his hand on her knee. They both leaned in, their lips meeting in a passion filled but calmer kiss. He lingered, his hand slid up her thigh and his other hand slid into her red hair to cradle the back of her head.

To her surprise, Dean was the one who broke the kiss first. The hand that had been situated at the back of her head slid down and forward to cup her jaw. "It's not like I don't have feeling for you Mae."

"I know." Her lusty eyes lit up with a smile, "You should probably go back to your room."

"Or I could stay." Again, he leaned into kiss her and again, she let him.

Maybe because he was rather skilled at kissing or maybe because she didn't entirely want to send him away, she knew she needed to ask him to leave. "No, you should really go Dean."

He was oddly enough okay with it, knowing that he had her right where he wanted her. They were together, they were being more honest with each other and it was only a matter of time before he had her asking him to spend the night. "Well, if you get lonely, you know where to find me.

"Yeah, I do."

~X~X~X~

The drive was quiet, not quite uncomfortably silent yet, but noticeable. Sam knew something was strange between his Dean and Mae, more than the normal amount of strange too. He assumed when his brother went to Mae's room that his brother would be gone until morning. It wasn't as if his brother had suddenly taken a vow of chastity. Not that he was eager to suggest it, or far worse, witness it but the two of them hooking up might actually make the two easier to be around.

Dean had a lot of hopes about what having the redheaded hunter around was going to be like, whether or not he voiced them to any one else. He couldn't speak for Mae but this was such a big risk for both of them that she had to have built certain fantasies around it. With such uncertainty around the pair that perhaps finally being together couldn't have lived up to expectations. Or maybe they were having second thoughts now that they were in such close quarters.

Maybe they were being extra careful, trying to once again keep from doing or saying anything that might offend the other. As horrifying as chancing upon his brother and Mae in the throws of their passionate tryst, watching them tiptoe around each other was worse.

He had trouble reading Mae and judging what was going through her mind. Dean on the other hand was obviously discomforted by the state of things. When he came back to the room, he hadn't exactly been in a bad mood but he was in a tense one. And obviously not particularly pleased with the way he had left things with her.

That left Dean driving, Mae reading a book and Sam in the back going over newspapers looking for their next case. She seemed comfortable but Dean was tense and twitchy. Every few minutes he would pass a sideways glance at Mae, seemingly hopeful that she might do something to ease that feeling of dissatisfaction.

Nothing with her seemed to go as planned, Dean thought. Their first night together didn't exactly unfold as he imagined. He'd spent the night alone and horny. It didn't take much when it came to the skinny redhead sitting next to him in the car. As they drove north—his brother, Mavis and himself, there was an odd dynamic. He couldn't call it uncomfortable or even tense, just awkward. It was only natural, he told himself but he wanted things to flow more smoothly and he just wanted to feel like he had imagined.

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><p>It was late, though not too late by the time the trio decided to stop for the night in one of the many who's names blurred together. There was still plenty of time for a stop at a bar rather than retiring to a motel. As far as small town bars in by the wayside towns, it was a fairly non-sleazy sort of place, even a little crowded actually. A mix of people filled the establishment, allowing them to blend in like any number of twenty somethings.<p>

Maybe this was a normal scene for the two brothers; a bar, their dad's journal and newspapers, Sam reading while Dean wanted to have fun. Of course it was. Even when they were younger, that was the dynamic, even if they weren't focused on hunting then. That might have been the norm but it was anything but where she and Dean were concerned.

He was acting a little strange ever since they had met up. Maybe it was her little confession from the night before. And she had asked him to leave despite the fact that both of them were interested in more than some fairly tame kissing.

Dean probably couldn't remember the last time he took things slow, if there was a time that didn't involve her. Was he having second thoughts he hadn't expressed the night before? Maybe it had been a test of some sort. He could have been trying to figure out if she was serious about this or if she was just planning to tease him. It was entirely possible, she thought, that he was disappointed because she didn't sleep with him last night.

The thought didn't sit well with her but Dean was still a man and he wasn't the sort of to share his feelings instead of expressing them. He was hardly the most sainted man in the world and in no way was he interested in her solely for her company or intellect or as another hunter. Not entirely. They weren't truly friends. They were once lovers, they were once boyfriend and girlfriend, and they were once family. But now…well now she couldn't define what they were.

Not that she was in the running for Sister Chastity either. Frankly, without their history, she was exactly the kind of woman Dean would have wanted to meet at this sort of place. Without that history, he was the kind of guy she would have gone for too. It turned out that their history was a sticking point for her. She hoped it was for him too. That might have been why she felt such a weird vibe coming off Dean on their way up north.

Naturally, they both jumped on the idea of having a drink and maybe unwinding a bit. It didn't take too long for her to find annoyance with that idea. Her jaw tightened as she tapped out a rhythm on her thigh. She could ignore the fact that Dean's eyes always lingered a little longer than necessary on a woman passing by. That was something she almost accepted.

Dean eyed a woman who passed by their table. The woman offered a flirtatious glance and Dean might have even winked back at her. Then turning back to Mae, he realized that she had been watching him. He offered her a cocky grin. It was one she considered charming, on occasion and she tried to make this one of those occasions. "Drink?"

Mae didn't consider herself a jealous person and as they hadn't laid out what this was, she didn't feel like she had the right to express that little niggling feeling of possessiveness that was rooted in the back of her head. With a tight-lipped smile, she nodded a little. "God, yes."

"What are you drinking?" He asked, running a finger over the knuckles of the hand she had resting on the table.

The momentary contact still excited her, despite her desire to be slightly more aloof. "Surprise me."

The words had rolled off her tongue like syrupy sweet honey. For some reason it made his blood run hotter. God, he thought, she was a tease. This time however, he thought she might be doing it on purpose. He hated how much she could throw him off his game, although that did make things more interesting.

With another grin and a wink, he turned from the table and headed up to the bar. A tiny appreciative moan might have escaped her throat as she watched him walk away. Damn that jacket of his, it covered up that man's truly fine ass. She wasn't the only one checking him out she noticed. One woman was bold enough to approach him as Dean ordered drinks.

'Don't look, don't look, don't look,' she repeated to herself over and over in her mind. Taking her eyes off him was an all together different issue. As she watched the rather gutsy woman run her fake and, in Mae's opinion, tacky nails down his arm, she clenched her jaw and was only able to hear the blood rushing in her ears. It wasn't because some woman was hitting on him but because he wasn't shutting it down.

Sam was saying something about a case or something he thought might have been a case. Mae wasn't sure, she wasn't listening because she was watching Dean. A flare of jealousy reared up in her throat making it hard for her to breath for a few seconds. The man was flirting mercilessly with not one but two women as he waited for their drinks. Okay, this might have been cause for jealousy, she thought.

The women flirting with him, she could understand and didn't bother her. Even his glances, sometimes lingering just a little too long weren't truly a problem for her. But he had gone less than five minutes before he was at it again his wandering eyes and frisky nature was setting her off. It wasn't entirely the women's fault either; Dean had to be aware of it.

"So do you think we have something here?"

Her cool blue eyes were hot at first, staring daggers in to the back of this brother's head and then confused as she returned her attention to him. "Hmm?"

Sam kept his exasperated expression to himself for a moment when he looked over to see where Mavis's eyes had been previously fixated. It didn't take more than a few seconds for him to understand why she wasn't paying attention to him. "A pattern, these deaths I was telling you about."

As inattentive as she was, she only caught something about a couple deaths and New Paltz. It meant little to her without the context he had been laying out. "Sorry, can you broad stroke it for me again. I wasn't really listening."

"Yeah well, I'll get Dean and we'll go over it just once more." Whether or not Sam noticed that she was pissed off she was at Dean, he waved his brother back over. And he returned to the table with the drinks he had originally gone to get before his little diversion.

Sam wasn't oblivious, he just didn't want to deal with their relationship issues. He had sympathy for Mae but she knew what his brother was like. She couldn't have expected him to change overnight.

Dean however knew the redhead's temper had flared again and this time, he couldn't blame her. An old habit, Dean told himself. He did not intend to do anything with either woman but… they were both attractive and willing. He pounced, out of habit, before pulling himself back. She hadn't said anything and he knew he was already in trouble.

"Hey, I was only seeing if she or her friend might be interested in Sammy here."

Mavis didn't for a second believe him entirely but it was Sam who spoke first. "Dean, no thanks, I can get my own dates."

"Yeah, you can, but you don't."

Mae's eyebrow quirked, it was an interesting dispute although possibly out of the arena of mere brotherly concern. Okay, maybe there was a thread of truth in his excuse. A very thin thread.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothin'. What do you got?"

Sam paused for a moment, looked at both Dean and Mae before he continued. "Mark and Anne Telesca of New Paltz, New York were both found dead in their home just a few days ago. Throats were slit, there were no prints, no murder weapons—Dean." His brother's glance had been focusing on the tight twitch of Mae's clenched jaw, although she wouldn't even look back at him. So Sam continued once his brother looked back at him, "No prints, no murder weapons, all doors and windows were locked from the inside."

"Could just be a garden-variety murder, you know, not our department." A case wasn't perfect right then, he wanted some time with Mae.

"No, Dad says different."

"John gave you a lead on this case?" Mae asked, interest piqued.

"What do you mean?"

"Look," Sam turned John's journal to Dean, "Dad noted three murders in the same area of upstate New York. First one, right here, 1912, the second one in 1945, and the third in 1970. The same M.O. as the Telescas—the throats were slit, the houses were locked from the inside. Now, so much time passed between the murders that nobody checked the pattern, except for Dad. He always kept his eyes peeled for another one."

"And now we got one."

Mae only gave another appreciated hum as she looked over at the paper and journal entries.

"Exactly." Sam said.

"All right, I'm with ya. It's worth checkin' out." Sam nodded and Dean looked back at Mae, who was doing her best to avoid eye contact. "We can't pick this up till the first thing, though, right?"

"Yeah." Sam said, slightly confused.

"Good." Dean slid the third beer over to Mae, "you in Red?"

At last, her eyes met his. They were now cooled, to a point that left him uneasy. Temper was a good thing coming from her, it meant she wasn't shutting anything out. "Yeah, I'm in. I need some air though."

Dean was kicking himself again. Miscommunication and misunderstanding seemed to be what they were best at and that was not what he was trying to do with her this time. However before he had a chance to follow the woman who was headed out the front door of the bar, his brother punched him in the arm. "Dude, are you seriously hitting on other women, in front of her? I thought you two were like… like dating or something."

"Yeah I know, it was just… I wasn't trying to hook up with those chicks or anything. It was seriously a reflex. And they started it."

"You might want to consider stopping ASAP because I get the feeling she only has this reaction once before she starts with her array of hidden knives."

Sam was right, he at the very least owed Mae an apology or an explanation. "I know, I know. I'm going after her."

The hunter hadn't gone far, only pacing outside the front of the bar. When she saw him, Mavis sighed. He shrugged, spreading his hands out in a gesture of surrender, then tucked them in the pockets of his jeans. "Okay so…yeah I don't know." He raked his hand through his hair. It seemed like things with Mae were screwed up before they had even gotten started. If it wasn't a mistake or a spell or some stupid issue they had kept bottled up for so long, it was sheer foolishness keeping them from doing the right thing.

There wasn't an apology in there, not exactly but she could tell by the restless gestures of his hands that he was searching for a real reason behind his behavior, aside from the obvious. "Dean, it's not like I have any reason to be annoyed or hurt. But I am and it's making me wonder if this was a good idea at all."

"Yeah, I know. I've never… had a girlfriend, not really. You're the only girl I've ever dated for a significant amount of time and that was… I just… I'm sorry. Can we start over?"

Mae laughed. "Dude, we can't start over every time one of us does something that hurts the other."

"Yeah we can." This smile wasn't cocky, it was hopeful but it was also a little scared, like she might really leave over this.

For some reason, it was the sort of thing that softened her heart. She stepped closer to him, pointing a finger at him. "You'd be pissed if I were hitting on some scuzzy bar guy."

"Damn straight!" He would have been. He already thought of her as 'his girl' again so she was right, "but uh… how 'bout I give you a pass and next time you get to do that?"

The gesture was endearing if not overly awkward. "No, that's not what I'm looking for. And seriously, I don't think you could even do that. It's not about that though. If… if we're going to do this, we're just going to have to be clear about what we're doing. I want this to be a little less awkward between us."

"I'm up for that. For starters, we could go back in, have a couple of drinks and I'll try not to let my irresistible good looks get in the way."

The woman paused before turning to head back in the bar. Dean put his arm around her when she was close enough. "Hey, I know, you can invite one of those chicks over for drinks and then start hitting on some skanky sluts in front of them, that's pretty unappealing."

"Funny." He said sarcastically, although he thought to himself that it sort of was cute.

This time, he was good to word and lavished his flirtation on her and her alone. When Sam left, considering his discomfort in watching his brother try to get laid, the two continued to drink and laugh and drink. Until they were drunk.

Dean kept referring to it as 'shore leave' which was far too fancy a term for him trying to get laid. It was an odd mixture of sincerity and cheesy pickup lines. The whole thing wasn't ideal but it was nice to be out with Dean. It was fun to go out and drink with him. She didn't have to keep her guard up, she didn't have to worry about sleazy guys trying to spike her drink. Now Dean wasn't totally harmless, he was trying his best to seduce her. It wasn't entirely unwelcome. She liked that he found her attractive and that he wanted to sleep with her. Even though they had a relationship years ago, she never felt like the sexy type with him. A part of her always thought they ended up together simply because they were together.

This was different; they had decided to attempt this on purpose. That made her uncomfortable. So because it made her looser, more comfortable, she drank more than she normally would have. It was certainly more than she should have. It was much later when they decided to leave the bar and they were both past the point of making good choices.

He wrapped his arm around her waist as they walked out of the bar to keep her steady as much as himself. Truth be told, they were stumbling more than walking and it left her giggling as she pressed her cheek against his shoulder. "I think I'm drunk Dean."

"Yeah, you are."

"Like you're going to church sober."

"Is that a thing?" He asked.

Laughing, she turned, stopping them both to lean up and kiss him. He took full advantage of the situation. Her mouth was sweet, heavy with the twist of whiskey. Any promise he made the night before slipped to the back of his mind as her arms twisted around his neck, pressing her slim body against his. She was warm, pliant, and just as intoxicating as anything he'd consumed in the bar.

He wanted her. It wasn't a secret at all, it wasn't new but for the first time in a long while, he thought maybe he could have her. Not just have her for the night, not just have sex with her or sleep with but really have her in his life again. Although that night, the rapidly increasing chance of sex with her weighted more on his mind than the rest. She wasn't fighting him so he could only think about the things he liked and enjoyed about her.

Right then however, he could only think about the slender, athletic body dwarfed by the denim and flannel. Unlike most of the women in his life, Mae kept her assets hidden, which made them more appealing. It surprised him. He liked knowing what he was getting into beforehand; he liked the teasing aspect of tight and skimpy clothes. And if he didn't know her, maybe he wouldn't be so captivated with her. The woman didn't wear makeup, didn't have highly coifed hair and she was dressed a bit like a lumberjack. Still, she was a beautiful woman. Maybe he would have taken a second glance, knowing she looked like she did without any help.

She kissed him with relish, finesse. Her fingers played against the short-cropped hair at the back of his neck. The light teasing touch sent a fiery feeling down his spine. It was an amazing sensation because there was no special move there, nothing tricky or skilled. She was just touching him. The sensation was nowhere near new; she'd always somehow possessed that talent but he thought by now it would have worn off.

They made their way back to the motel. At the door to her room, he pulled her arm, spinning her around so he could press her against the door. He kissed her there, hot and a little sloppy but it was a move that almost always worked. With one hand, he braced himself against the door too. The other was a bit more adventurous, playing at the hem of the green flannel shirt, occasionally brushing her breast lightly with the back of his hand.

In the back of her mind, she thought she should stop him and wanted to stop him. But no part of her mind was running the show right then. Not when he smelled so nice and tasted like he did and certainly not when that firm wall of muscles that was Dean stood so close to her.

Making out with him against the door of some cheap motel was fun for reasons she couldn't quite put her finger on, a little daring, a little reminiscent of something more random and foreign. But because it was with Dean, she felt safe and unburdened. This wasn't just because they were horny. It wasn't about satisfying a need either. Not entirely.

All of that was there, layer in a complex mishmash of all their other emotions, heavily lubricated by liquor. She was more than willing to let him do what he wanted to that night. She had a handful of sexually frustrated months under her belt and a distinct desire to let Dean help her out with that. She wanted him to, maybe more than usual in this particular moment. That thought kept circling around her mind her mind even as his knee moved up to part her thighs.

Oh, she thought, Dean Winchester was the only man who could make her feel like this; uncontrolled but safe, calm but wild, and desirable. He had always had that power and she had never found any other man who could give her all of that. She turned her head away from his eager mouth. "Dean… Dean, we're not inside yet."

"I know… why don't I let you open the door? Unless you want to go to the car?"

Her fingers played at the collar of his shirt. Those pretty blue eyes of hers were dilated but lusty as she weighed her options. He twirled her hair between his fingers, fascinated with those silky red strands for a moment as he eyes slid to greedy. It was right before she turned the knob, sending them tumbling backwards into the room. The falling sensation sent Mae into a thither of giggles as Dean fought to find his ground and pull her upwards with him.

It might have been a moment of clarity when she was nearly falling to the ground but still grasping for more from him, a hint of sobriety or something else altogether but he found her busy hands and lusty mouth unappealing. Well, he thought, not unappealing, quite the opposite in fact but he knew it wasn't all her. Part of her actions were fueled by whiskey and while he wasn't usually opposed to a drunken tryst, he didn't want to start out on that foot.

He didn't think she would hold it against him if they did anything that night. It just didn't feel right. It would have been easier to convince his body of that if she wasn't so damned exciting. "We've gotta stop Red."

She tugged at him again, pulling him into the room. "No we don't."

"As much as I would, oh Jesus…" he moaned as she started kissing his neck, occasionally letting her teeth scrape along his skin. "Yeah, we've got to stop before… before this goes any further."

"You don't want to get laid tonight?"

That nervous chuckle did nothing to alleviate the tension in this body as he shut the door. "I don't want to do it when, when you're this drunk."

"It's not like I'd say no even sober."

"You did last night so we'll just have to test that out later, okay?"

"Mmm…" she moaned, you're not fun"

"Don't worry, I'll be fun later."

"Then stay? I like sleeping next to you."


	5. Chapter 5

The Truth Between You and Me

Chapter 5

Disclaimer- Still don't own the things you recognize, only borrowing them!

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><p>The nervous pacing was annoying but Mae wasn't sure what else to do. John had sent Sam out and part of her thought she should have gone along with him. Maybe she would have been able to console him or he could have consoled her. Or they could have sat entrenched in denial That would have been a ready relief. Of course, there was still the fact that he was going to meet Bobby. The pair hadn't exactly reached any sort of a détente in the time they had spent together.<p>

The choice to risk running into John rather than Bobby wasn't easy but for some reason, she couldn't leave. Mae wanted to leave. She didn't have a fondness for hospitals and, she thought, there was probably more she could do out in the real world at the moment but she almost physically couldn't.

In fact, the further she ventured from Dean's bedside, the more pained she felt. It wasn't something she could explain or rationalize. It was more than worry or grief or anything else she could think of. No, this was something beyond emotion. She couldn't leave him.

Her chat with John wasn't reassuring either. Knowing there was something turning over in his mind left her jumpier than before. Before she thought…well, she thought Dean was dying. Now she thought he might still die but that John was going to do something stupid. In their line of work, that was saying something

Mae almost laughed at that idea but then her phone rang. She already knew who it would be. "Hey Sam."

Her voice was quietly reassuring and Dean would have done anything to change that tone. He had been following her around, wishing he could somehow get through to her, do something to make her see him. But that tone told her that she wasn't hopeful, she wasn't expecting him to come out of this. He didn't want her to be offering her consolations yet. He wasn't dead yet and he couldn't exactly reassure her of that in this current state.

"Listen, where's dad?" Sam was curt, unexpectedly demanding but she could hardly blame him for whatever he was feeling. Even on a good day, she didn't exactly expect him to talk about his dad with any less distain in his voice.

"He's in his room, I think. He was with Dean for a while and then… you know, I wasn't… I haven't really been keeping tabs your dad."

The idea of spending any extended amount of time with John Winchester right then left her feeling incredibly uncomfortable. There wasn't a good reason either. They had spoken and while she was upset that he hadn't let her know about his suspicious that they were all tied together by the same demon, she wasn't upset about the obvious. She simply knew she needed to stay with Dean.

"Well… can you keep an eye on him 'til I get there?"

"Do you really think—I'd rather…" while chasing after John wasn't on her list of things she hated, she couldn't explain to Sam why she had to stay with his brother, "Dean's not getting any better. I'd rather stay here with him than play a part in this whole thing between you and your father, okay?"

He wasn't intentionally starting a fight. When it came to his father, they just happened. More importantly, he wasn't letting his brother die, not until he had exhausted every option. "He's planning something, alright? I think we can get Dean back but not if dad is… not if he's putting this hunt ahead of him."

Sam thought he was after the demon and perhaps he was; after all it had already taken his wife and would be responsible for the death of his oldest son. Maybe he snapped. But she found him displaying a scary amount of control. The kind of thing she saw in those Winchester men when they had something in their head they were set on doing and nothing could dissuade them. Whether Sam was right or not, she knew—even from the grave—Dean would be pissed off at that. What could John do anyway? It wasn't like he could save Dean any more than she could. "Sam, you don't—"

"Please, just trust me on this, okay? For Dean?"

It was a cheap shot and they both knew that's why he pulled it.

"I swear…" she sighed but gave in, "you're a pain in the ass, you know that?"

There was just a hint of humor in her tone, sad humor but it was enough to reassure Sam that she would do as he asked.

* * *

><p>If it weren't for the shock of red hair, John would have thought the pale and slender woman was a ghost. Something in her carriage always made him question if she should be doing this job, if she had been tempered enough to stand up against it. As many had perhaps noticed about her, she was a bit too tall, too slender, too wide eyed and looked too much like a china doll at first.<p>

In the next moment, those wide, almost innocent eyes would harden and she was all hunter. Her frame was lean, rather than just skinny, and well trained. An assortment of fine and artless scars could be found littering her pale flesh and even her now longer red hair tended to be in wavy disarray. The more you studied her, the more you could find that stood out and made her worth a second look.

As she walked into his hospital room however, she seemed to have a sorrowful shadow hanging over her head. At first, he suspected the worst but thought she would have come in with more determination and emotion. Her approach this time was rather reluctant. "Everything okay?" He asked

Mae nodded. "They needed to run some tests and… I don't know, I ended up here."

A disbelieving smirk crossed his face. "You hear from Sam?"

Again, she nodded. "Yeah, he's on his way back and Bobby's towing the Impala back to the house."

"He get the gun?"

Maybe Sam was on to something after all. Maybe John was so far gone, so obsessed that Dean had become yet another casualty. "He didn't say. He was more worried about Dean than anything."

"So he asked you to come spy on me?"

You didn't get this far without being pretty sharp, she thought and with brief, half-smirk she took a seat in the molded plastic chair. "More like babysit." Since he was being blunt, she dropped her façade too, "What's your plan here John? I mean… I can't figure if this is… you know your son is dying, right? If this is about avenging his death, can't you at least wait until Dean's cold before you take up on the trail again?

"This isn't revenge." His reply was quick but temperate.

"C'mon that's your game plan since… ever. When has that not been what drives you? You don't have to tell me how you feel about that demon taking another one of your loved ones but you've still got one son and you've still got…" She shook her head, wondering if she was telling this to him for his sake or for hers, "well, maybe you're worried about the trail going cold."

"You have to trust me."

There was a plea in that statement that shook her again. He seemed to be able to do that quite well. Complex was the least descriptive way to refer to her relationship with John. Even before the unfortunateness of that spell that tore apart the remains of her little family, it had been odd.

He wasn't her father and her uncle was certainly better at being a father and yet John Winchester had always held a special place in her heart. The man had always placed a higher value on the job but for her he would make an exception on occasion and was a softer, gentler version. She didn't know why he extended that part of himself to her. It had undoubtedly caused tension between her and Dean, although she hadn't realized it until later.

John gone easier on the her than the boys when it came to training for the job, in some ways he was tougher on her because she was a girl. But there were a few times, particularly when she was very little that he was more like a dad than Bobby was. That was the John Winchester who kept asking her to trust him. It was hard to deny that emotion that made her want to believe him.

"Seriously, did you guys have some kind of pow pow where you decided you'd all have a stab at telling me that? Besides, have I ever not trusted you? Even when it was stupid…"she closed her eyes, hoping to impart something more than bickering into this conversation, "but I'd at least like to know why you're not saying goodbye to your son or trying to make amends… or whatever it is you'd do. He deserves that much. All he ever wanted was for you to be proud of him."

"Of course I'm proud of him and he knows I am."

She shook her head. "Take it from someone who's burned more than my fair share of bridges with him, I'm telling you, you need to tell him. Even if… you know they claim you can hear things when you're in a coma and maybe that's not true. But it would do you good anyway. Just this once, deal with this like a normal parent and not a hunter."

He wanted to tell her, a little. He wanted to reassure her that he was doing something for his son. But knew he couldn't. After a few moments of silence, he looked up at the woman. "Do you still mean what you said before, about Dean?"

"What? What did you say?" Dean asked, having been watching and listening to everything going on between his father and his girl. He found himself surprised that Mae had confided something to his father and seeing true conflict that resonated in her sad eyes. But he had no idea what they were talking about now.

Mae only paused a few seconds, averting her gaze as if trying not to shed more tears. "Of course I do."

"Then trust me, alright? Dean's not going to die if I can do anything about it."

She didn't like it. John Winchester had more tricks up his sleeve than even his sons knew. Sam's choice of revenge being his primary motivation seemed less true to her. If it wasn't, it was something worse like…

Mae interrupted her own train of thought. "But you are after the demon. What do you want from it? I don't need to tell you that bastard can't give you anything that's—"

"I'm doing right by my son, that's all you need to know." It wasn't an order, it was more of a promise and she assumed he was also trying to make something up to her too. That part was said with his expression.

"Dean wouldn't want-"

"But he does deserve more than he's gotten and you know it. Just—be with him, alright?" That part was an order. He didn't want her underfoot.

It was then that Sam stalked into the room, bringing more discomfort with his doom and gloom expression. A fight was on the horizon, there was no doubt about that.

Despite the fact that no one could see or hear him, Dean still tried talking. "Sammy! Tell me you can friggin' hear me, man, there's something in the hospital. Now, you've got to bring me back and we've got to hunt this thing."

Whatever brought on his less than charming attitude, Mae was certain it was more or less an extension of the fight Sam and John had played out for years. The heat in Sam's eyes was more than enough proof.

"You're quiet." Those words were all it took to pour gasoline on the fire.

Fuming, Sam turned and threw the duffle bag onto the bed with a crash. "Did you think I wouldn't find out?"

"What are you talking about?"

"That stuff from Bobby, you don't use it to ward off a demon, you use it to summon one. You're planning on bringing the demon here, aren't you? Having some stupid macho showdown?"

Mae stood up, placing herself between the two men and placing a hand on Sam's chest. "Sam, take a breath here and—"

"Don't tell me to calm down." His eyes were angry but when he looked at her, it wasn't directed solely at her as he brushed her hand aside.

"I have a plan, Sam"

That caused her to frown as she turned her head towards him.

"That's exactly my point! Dean is dying, and you have a plan! You know what? You care more about killing this demon than you do saving your own son!"

"No, no, no, guys, don't do this!" On some level, Dean knew this was coming, that what might have brought his brother and father together in solidarity, his death, really wouldn't bring them together.

"Do not tell me how I feel! I am doing this for Dean." Maybe it was having just gone over this with Mae or maybe it was because of how Sam approached it but John snapped.

"How? How is revenge going to help him? You're not thinking about anybody but yourself, it's the same selfish obsession!"

As Dean spoke the words, Mae echoed them. "Come on guys, don't do this!"

"You know, it's funny, I thought it was your obsession too! This demon killed your mother, killed your girlfriend. You begged me to be part of this hunt. Now if you'd killed that damn thing when you had the chance, none of this would have happened. "

"It was possessing you, Dad, I would have killed you too."

This time her frown was directed towards Sam because he had left that part of out the story he told her. Not that either man saw or even noticed her. They were too deep in their fight and she stepped aside.

"Yeah, and your brother would be awake right now."

"Shut up, both of you!" Dean yelled, to deaf ears.

"Go to hell."

"I should have never taken you along in the first place. I knew it was a mistake, I knew I was wrong —"

"I said SHUT UP!" No one heard him yell that time but when the glass of water went flying from the table to smash on the floor, all three of them took notice.

"Dude, I full-on Swayze'd that mother." Again, he spoke his amazement to no one in the room.

"What the—"

Mae's confused exclamation was cut short by nurses and doctors running by in the hallway.

"Something's going on out there." John said, jerking his head to indicate that she and Sam should check it out.


	6. Chapter 6

The Truth Between You and Me

Chapter 6

Disclaimer- Still don't own the things you recognize, only borrowing them!

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><p>A woozy fog hung over his head when he awoke, although that wasn't an uncommon occurrence. All the same it was nearly pleasant because he was lying next to a warm, lithe body. The details were on the fuzzy side but most importantly he remembered the bars and the drinks and a fluster of hands. And he remembered that the chick he was hitting on wasn't just any chick. Mae.<p>

Somehow, they found themselves in bed together. Her additively long legs slid against his, bare and inviting. Evidently, they had wound up without pants. In fact, she was just wearing panties and a tank top. The underwear, that was an educated guess since he hadn't checked but he was fairly certain they didn't run any of the fun bases.

Instead of investigating, he enjoyed the moment where she was still sleeping and his hand was under her top, resting on her soft stomach. She had a surprisingly pleasant body, her skin was soft, body lean and athletic. God, he wanted to see her in action. Dean just knew they would fall into synch with no trouble at all. It wouldn't be the same awkward encounters of their youth but still full of that same attachment. He just had to convince her that attachment was a big plus.

Waking up with her was reassuring. Things were leaning in his favor and if he was honest with himself, he enjoyed being with a woman—hell, knowing a woman—he could let his defenses down around and just sleep with. The connection he felt with her was comfortable and exciting, both at the same time. Maybe that was why he tried so hard with her. He wasn't really sure. All he knew was so comfortable that he didn't move until she started to stir.

When Mae woke, bleary eyed, her body was reluctant to move. It was not because she was hung-over but because she was quite comfortable. Dean was snuggled up next to her. On the few occasions they'd wound up in bed together, they always ended up curled together. A few months ago, she would have freaked out, not because they were together but because reassuring to have him so close. Sleeping with Dean was insanely comforting. There wasn't any regret, remorse, or any of the things that usually followed either random hookups or emotional moments with Dean.

Most surprisingly, she hadn't even wanted to slip out during the night or kick him out. No, this was different entirely. When they were younger, they didn't have the luxury of lingering in bed together, lest they be caught. In retrospect, Bobby and John probably knew that they weren't just close. That didn't explain why neither man tried to put a stop to that. If they had realized that, maybe they wouldn't have snuck around like they did.

The only other man she had indulge in something like this with was Dan. But he wasn't like Dean. He didn't make her feel the same way Dean did. Thinking about that made her slightly uncomfortable because of the way things ended with him. It was best to keep her mind on the here and now. Bed. Dean.

It was difficult to convince herself that she should get out of bed, that she should leave Dean's arms or that she needed to. The boys, Dean in particular, had a rough past few days, opening old wounds. Maybe they would take a day or two and just relax. It wasn't Dean she would have to convince however. Actually, it wouldn't take any work to convince Dean they should stay. The promise of sex, even the promise of the possibility of sex was all she would need.

His younger brother would need more than just the enticement of a day in bed with her. She would have to think about what might convince him that staying was a better plan than hitting the road again.

That wasn't going to happen then because Dean's hands started to roam as they had before. He moved up from her stomach, just under her breast. Yeah, he had to know she was awake. His mouth was busy exploring the side of her neck. His fingers played nimbly on that skin just over her ribs. Strangely though, he didn't move up further and he had always been the first to cop a feel. This was more erotic and sensual, playful. Even with her head fuzzy, stomach less than stable and feeling increasingly aware of her own discomfort, his hands made her feel warm and safe.

Briefly, she wondered if he could become as distracted by her as she was by him. And she wondered if he could lose himself as easily in this moment too. She seized the restive motion of his hand with her hand. It wasn't an angry gesture but he was simply too distracting.

"Dean?" Her voice was thick and husky, erotic.

"Mmmm…what?" He mumbled against her shoulder.

"Please stop."

He couldn't help but be disappointed but he realized he hadn't given her much time to wake up all the way. He kissed her a few more times. "Now?"

"Yeah. Drank a lot last night, I've gotta go to the bathroom."

The lovely redhead made a good point, it had been a long night and as reluctant as he was to let her go, they had more than enough time to be reacquainted. After a quick squeeze, he moved his arm off her midsection.

Sliding from bed, she all but dashed to the bathroom. There were two reasons she made a run for it; one biologically demanding but the other was more complex. Maybe the roller-coaster of emotions she felt for him would subside, given enough time but for the time being she didn't know how exactly to articulate any of this to him.

She thought that she loved him. She knew that she cared deeply about him and wanted to fix things between them. She wanted to be with him but she wasn't sure what that would mean, what it would look like and she wanted to know, at least a little. The list of her wants was getting longer and longer, she decided as she scrubbed her hand over her face.

Bracing her hands on the side of the sink counter, she looked into the mirror. The reflection wasn't unpleasant. In fact, she didn't think she looked particularly hung over. She thought she looked just a little tired, dark circles just barely showing up under her grey blue eyes. Then she tried to think about how she might look to Dean. It was something that she had thought of more often lately, despite not wanting to.

Like always, she was perplexed as to why he found her attractive. Oh, she didn't think of herself as ugly but she knew she was no beauty queen. She certainly didn't see herself as the sort of girl Dean normally pursued. That had always been the case and yet… yet he was still attracted to her. Hell, he had always been attracted to her. It wasn't just physical either. He liked her, a notion that was more than a little confusing.

The beginnings of a headache gnawed at the base of her skull. Too much thinking, she decided. A shower was in order. Silently, she prayed that this was the sort of place that had decent water pressure and plenty of hot water. You couldn't always count on either in the sort of places they frequented. Turning on the water, she undressed while she waited for it to warm up to a tolerable temperature.

The hot water ran smoothly down the back of her neck when she stepped under the spray. It was nice, not as nice as a long, relaxing bath in her bathtub back home but that would have made her a bit lonelier now. Even with all the unknown elements about whatever this was with Dean, the idea that she had company, partners, was nice. She had hunted alone for a long time now. It would be refreshing having backup. And someone to talk to, other than herself, again.

Now, when Dean heard the shower start up shortly after the flush of the toilet, he was confused, disappointed. Mae was supposed to come back to bed. Maybe the little redhead had something more fun planned. The thought brought a lecherous smile to his lips and sent his blood pumping hotter.

Wet, soapy, naked Mae, the prospect made him jump at the opportunity to get closer to his favorite redhead. Dean eased the curtain back and slid up behind her. Alarmed, she spun around and was lucky to not lose her balance. "Jesus!" She gasped, pressing her hands against her heart.

Dean fancied it quite the achievement to catch her by surprise. She must have been a million miles away not to hear him come in or the slight sound of the shower curtain hooks moving along the rod. The amused quirk of his lips was impossible to keep to himself. The look on her face however, told him that she hadn't expected company.

"What are you doing in here?"

He was intrigued; she didn't want him there but she wasn't shoving him out. It was almost surreal because he didn't know what to expect. "You invited me back to your room."

To his credit, she thought, his eyes never left her face. "Yes well… I don't mean the room, I mean why are you in the shower with me?"

"Hey sugar, you're the one who took the bathroom hostage. Other people have needs, you know." He tried to cover, admitting to himself that there was a sliver of truth in his assessment.

With one arm, she awkwardly covered her chest. "I—I realize that but—you are in the shower with me."

"I am." He grinned, moving just a little closer to her.

"I'm naked."

"You are."

"So are you."

"You've got a good eye, Red."

An amused frown crossed her lips. "I don't think being naked together is exactly the best situation for us."

"I was sort of under the impression that this was headed this direction. I mean last night-"

"You stopped us from going any further."

"We were drunk. I might be a lot of things and I can't say that I haven't had my fair share of drunken encounters but…it didn't feel right, okay? Not this time."

Chivalry wasn't something she spent any amount of time seeking out. Yet when he said that it didn't feel right to make the best of their respective conditions last night, it made her feel something she hadn't felt in a long time. It was entirely possible that she was in love with him. She sighed as she tried to look solely at his handsome face since he was equally naked.

Dean smiled at the hesitation in her expression, seeing more uncertainty than truth there. He took another small step closer to her. This time he reached out, hands sliding down her warm slippery skin as they moved from her shoulders to her waist. They rested firmly there as he looked steadfastly into her eyes. "Can we just call this what this is?"

She swallowed hard from both nerves and arousal. "Awkward?"

She could always make him laugh. "A little but I meant… you and me. If what you want is just a friend, someone to hunt with then now's the time to speak up because otherwise, I'm reading all the heavy petting wrong."

"No, you're not reading this wrong. Look, I really am attracted to you and I don't want to just be your friend. I just… this isn't really a great place to have a chat, now is it?"

"Honestly, I want you a little uncomfortable." Not that he wasn't uncomfortable himself but for different reasons than Mae.

"Well that's… I don't know what. It's not very nice, I know that much. But job well done."

He reached up to cup her cheek. "Sorry baby but you're impossible to nail down when you're in your comfort zone. I know you Mae and I think this is a pretty good gambit."

"To get me to tell you what you want."

His gaze turned a little more heated as his thumb ran over her lips. "Yeah."

She took his hand off her hip, holding it between hers before pressing his large hand against his chest. "You use this technique a lot Dean?"

Having her touch him back sent a hefty portion of the blood in his brain south and quickly. His eyes drifted down momentarily to take in her breast, plumped together with tiny rivulets of water trailing over her pale skin. "Only with stubborn and hot redheads."

Her eyes rolled but she gripped his hand with a reassuring squeeze. "Fine but you start first."

"That's so not how it works. But I'll give you a pass just this once. Seriously, do you really think it's not clear exactly how I feel about you and what I want with you?"

"You took off your clothes and got in the shower with me. I think what you want is clear."

She wasn't totally wrong; there was a big part of this that was about sex for him. That wasn't the only thing he wanted though. He wanted a relationship, a girlfriend, although he didn't think that was necessarily the best name for what he wanted with her. He liked having a partner, having someone to talk with and someone who he could spend the night simply sleeping beside. Of course, that was difficult to convince her of when they were in the shower together and he was so aroused. "That's just the shower talking."

"No it's not. You wanna screw me."

"Obviously. But I've wanted that for… well since ever. You can't blame me for that. And that's never been one sided. Besides, do you think I invite some fling to hunt with me? Do you think I consider just random chicks like part of my family? I mean the fact that we're even here and having this conversation… I'm in love with you Mae."

The crimson blush that spread over her cheeks and down her chest was erotic for some reason. It also told him that she had him wrapped around her finger. "Dean…I, I can't—I don't exactly know how to respond to that. "

"You don't need to respond, you just need to realize that I'm not playing some sort of long con just to bang you once and then leave. So, that's how I feel. Now, you." He trailed a finger along her jaw, over her chin and down her throat. Despite the heat in the shower and between them, she shivered at the contact.

"I already told you I have feelings for you. I don't know what they are exactly but… I wouldn't be here-in this shower, in this motel, in your life- if I didn't. I want you and I want to be with you. I just don't know how and it makes me…" Her brow furrowed, "It makes me think I'm making a mistake. Not that you're a mistake just…" she dropped her pretense of modesty when she raked the hand not in Dean's through her wet hair, "I'm not great at this."

He shushed her by pressing his fingers against her lips. "Baby, what exactly do you think I expect you're going to do? I'm not looking for some apple pie life with you. We're doing the job so we take what we can get. It's long drives, crappy motel rooms, and evil sons of bitches. It's not a great life but I could see having it with you. I'm no expert here either you know. It doesn't matter who hurt who or how, not to me anymore. I just know, for whatever insane reason, I like being with you."

While Dean could be rude and ineloquent at times, he had picked just the right words to make her feel like she didn't need to be insecure about this. "Dude, if you could say that while we're dressed…you're sweet… but—"

"But what?"

"Well I'm worried about how you'll take what I want to say next."

Dean tipped her chin up when she broke eye contact with him. "No offence Red but you slept with my dad and I got over that. I'm pretty sure there's not much you could say that would send me running. But if that's true, then this isn't the relationship we're supposed to have. And if you can't tell me at this point…and for the love of God, please don't make me say 'relationship' anymore. It's freaking me out." He then leaned down to kiss her lips lightly.

He was right. They had to be honest with each other, she knew that much. And if he said no to her, then he wasn't the sort of person she wanted to be with. "Can we wait? I know that last night I was-"

"Drunk?"

"Insistent."

"Yeah but that wasn't just you. So… you want to take it slow?" It wasn't something unexpected. She'd repressed reservations in the past and without alcohol she hadn't let things go very far. Still, he couldn't help but tease her. "When did you get so puritanical Maeby?"

That frown on her pretty face however told him she didn't find his joke particularly funny. "It's not a matter of being a prude or anything. In fact, my problem is that I can't see this as a fling or… God, I hate how nervous this makes me." She said with a harsh sigh, "I've said it before, you really get to me. I can't dive head first into this. And it's more difficult because I'm really… I'm attracted to you and…" It wasn't the heat of the shower that caused the woman's pale skin to go a deeper shade of pink when she huffed and closed her eyes.

"We're not doing anything we're not both ready for."

But she was on a roll so his placation did nothing to stop her. "But you're ready now."

"Well yeah, I'd much rather be having slippery shower fun than all this heart to heart stuff but if you're not ready, I'm not gonna force it. That's really not any fun for me."

Mae nodded, looking up at him now with more playfulness in her eyes. "Okay, good. Thank you and…can you… try to be a little less… overtly… hot."

"I don't know about that," he said with that hot green gaze that could make any girl give into his desires, "but I'll try. This is new for me too. If I think a little more like Sam, I can see your point. It would be best for me to get out of this shower, huh?"

This time she reached out for him, not ready to let him go yet. "Well… I'm not entirely opposed to making out with you."

His eyebrow quirked. "So what does that mean, exactly?"

"I would say third base, considering."

"I don't know, that almost sounds like you're taking advantage of me. What if there's something I'm not into?"

Mae laughed, "Yeah okay, you tell me what you're not into and I promise you I won't do that. I would love to find out what that is Dean Winchester."

Playfully, he shoved her back under the stream of warm water, keeping his hands on her hips the whole time. Instinctively, she braced herself by grabbing on to his shoulders before she was able to move back out of the spray. "Here's one thing I'm not into; you not trusting me."

"I trust you, Dean."

"Then let me wash your hair."

She scoffed. Skepticism, curiosity and humor passed over her face. "Seriously, you want to _wash_ my hair? I would have to say that's a first."

Dean nodded, a very warm and sensuous smile on his lips. Mae gave him a quiet 'okay'.

Her hair was already wet so he grabbed the bottle of shampoo, squeezing a dollop of the substance into his hand. With great care, Dean lathered the shampoo into her long red hair. Her eyes drifted closed, head lulled to the side as he massaged her scalp. She was right, this was a first. Well, he'd washed her hair before but he hadn't done that with any other woman. "This okay?"

"Mmm…perfect. Wonderful."

"Your hair was much shorter the last time we did this"

She opened one eye dubiously. "You remember the last time we did this?"

Mae could have sworn a blush touched his freckled cheeks, which was well worth seeing if in fact he was a little embarrassed by her question. "I sort of remember most every time I get you naked."

A lackadaisical smile graced her lips when she opened her eyes as she laughed a little. "That makes more sense."

Dean angled her head back under the spray to rinse the suds out of her hair. It was a chance for him to take advantage of the position to admire her soft and soapy body. Yeah, there were more blatantly sexy women out there, women who would have taken advantage of her slim frame and dressed more provocatively. But perhaps because she wore jeans and tee shirts and button downs over that, seeing her naked with her feminine curves and creamy skin, he wanted so much more. But that would come later. He had rinsed the suds from her hair finally and knew he had to stop massaging her head.

When he stopped, he took a second to clear his throat. "You know, I may not every say this in front of anyone else but I would rather have you comfortable with me than… than just be casual."

The look in her eyes made him glad he said it since her silence up until that point had left him uncertain. It was reassuring and just what she wanted to hear then. She just wanted him to hold her right then. Silently, she turned away from him and leaning her back against his chest. Without any prompting, he wrapped his arms around her waist. Lightly, he pressed his lips against her wet head. Her hands slid up his muscular arms as she sighed softly.

The whole thing could only be described as intimate and of course, she could count on one hand the number of men, hell the number of people she was even friendly with, let alone having been legitimately intimate with. It wasn't intimate because they were naked or because of the rush of hormones.

No, as always it was because of the fact that she could turn her back on him, she could leave herself open to his touch, to his words and he wouldn't hurt her. As if sensing her thoughts on vulnerability, one of his hands slid from her waist along the front of her pelvis to touch the old scar that lay there. "Does it ever hurt Maes?"

Her inhale was sharp, not expecting him to touch her like that or talk about it. But his hands were warm, warmer than the air surrounding them or even the stream of water. His skin was rough but his touch was tender. They didn't press into the flesh of the well healed scar and they didn't slide into the red curls the scar slashed into. So, no it wasn't painful in the least, only surprising.

She covered his hand with hers, sliding her fingers between his but she didn't move his hand. "No… sometime if I'm thinking about it or… sometimes I recall the pain but it doesn't hurt. You know, it didn't really hurt that much when it happened. I was shocked and moving around was painful but actually having that chunk of metal through me didn't hurt so much."

"Do you… does it bother you?"

She laughed. "The scar? I think I have a lot bigger ones and—I gave up needing to be that kind of beautiful girl. Besides, it's not like a lot of people spend a great amount of time looking at it."

"You're an insanely beautiful woman."

Why he was telling her all this, bringing it up and touching her like this was beyond her. "I'm not… that's not really something I'm worried about but thank you."

"You know… maybe I shouldn't bring it up now, but I've been thinking a lot about this since Idaho." His fingers pressed a little more firmly as his other hand ran soothingly up her arm. "I would have done anything you asked me. You wouldn't have even had to ask me. I would have just done anything for you."

"Do we have to talk about this right now?"

"Mae... I just have to tell you. I know it's a moot point now but I would have done anything."

He felt her head shake just slightly against his shoulder. "There wasn't anything you could have done and in retrospect, what happened—well, it had to happen the way it happened. I needed to go off and do what I did."

"But—"

For Mae, there wasn't anything more that needed to be said about the issue. "I knew, even back, then that you would have tried and you would have meant anything you promised me but you couldn't have kept those promises. You wouldn't have been able to stay with me. You would have gone stir crazy while you waited for me to recover and having to take care of me, you would have ended up resenting me. I would have ended up resenting you because you had the freedom I couldn't have then."

"You don't know that."

He still held her in his arms and that was why he could feel her tense more obviously. "You were what 17, 18? You think you were ready to take care of some girl who was more than likely paralyzed from the waist down? What, you were going to go straight and get a job? Leave Sam with your dad? Leave your dad?"

"That's not fair."

"Fair or not, it's…I'm not wrong. And I'm not saying that I blame you. I just didn't want… there weren't a lot of options for us and I didn't want to end up being the one you didn't pick."

"Well…I guess…mood killer, huh?"


	7. Chapter 7

The Truth Between You and Me

Chapter 7

Disclaimer- Still don't own the things you recognize, only borrowing them!

* * *

><p>~X~X~X~Now~X~X~X~<p>

Something terrible had happened; the initial feeling was swift, as if she'd been struck then it became more of a nauseous, clawing at something deep inside her. Not that she could explain what exactly was twisting her gut, leaving her breathless for a moment. If hurt, physically, and she didn't even know what was happening at first. In that moment, she simply knew Dean was dead and it felt as if a part of her had been taken along with him but it only lasted that moment

Her chest was tight as if her breath was being ripped out of her lungs, along with everything else in her chest cavity. She stood, largely because of Sam's imposing presence. Her fingers gripped, perhaps too tightly, around his forearm as they stood in the doorway of Dean's hospital room.

It was far too much and it seemed as if everything washed out to an almost static silence before coming back into sharp contrast. Monitors beeped as a doctor and nurses surrounded Dean, trying to resuscitate him.

"All clear." The doctor said.

Mae heard Sam whisper 'no' as his arm draped over her shoulder and he pulled her closer. She didn't look up at him but knew his eyes were tearing up too.

"Still no pulse." One of the nurses said.

Sam's arm tightened and Mavis might have objected if she could have felt much of anything right then. She might have also noticed that she was squeezing him back just as tightly, as if holding on to each other might keep Dean tied to them.

"Okay, let's go again, 360."

"Charging."

Mae whispered, "Dean… come on."

She stood with his brother in the doorway, wishing she could do something, anything, to put an end to this. Sam didn't hold back the tears. Things weren't supposed to end like this.

Dean came up behind the pair. Under other circumstances, Sam and Mae acting like family would have been a welcome sight, almost touching. Except for the fact that he was dying. He wanted his family all together but he also wanted to enjoy that. While they stood watching the doctors try to bring him back, they didn't see what he saw: a ghostly figure floating over his body. "You get the hell away from me."

Dean rushed the spirit… the thing… he didn't know what it was yet but it wasn't doing him any favors. "I said get back!" He yelled.

Sam blinked, confused, as he swore he could hear his brother. It was distant but undeniable. He didn't want to tear his eyes away from his brother but maybe Mae had heard it too. He looked down at her. The redhead didn't seem to have heard it or she wasn't making any indications that she did.

Dean grabbed for the spirit and for a moment he took a hold of it before it hurled him back and out of the room. The monitors which had been sounding their alarm slowed and quieted.

"We have a pulse. We're back into sinus rhythm."

Dean ran past Mae and Sam into the hallway, looking for the spirit but it was gone. Mae gave a sigh of relief, letting go of the breath she didn't even know she was holding. His brother did likewise. He gave Mae a reassuring squeeze before letting go of her. They both backed into the hall. Even though they seemed unaware of him, Dean took his place beside the pair.

"Don't worry. I'm not going anywhere. I'm getting that thing before it gets me. It's some kind of spirit, but I could grab it. And if I can grab it, I can kill it. "

The scene had been overwhelming. Logically, Mae knew she didn't have any power over keeping Dean alive and that eventually… eventually they wouldn't be able to bring him back. Normal people wouldn't have been looking for a way to save him, outside of what medical science offered or possibly prayer. Neither of those were on their side, she thought.

Perhaps she should have stayed by his bedside but she couldn't watch him die. That was too much. She found herself in the nearly empty waiting room, sitting and listening to the sounds of the hospital as they surrounded her. All of the sudden her legs shook too much for her to find them reliable. With a sigh, she pressed her hand over her mouth. She was not going to cry, not over this, not over him.

She wanted to run, get away from this hospital, from having to watch Dean die and from being in the middle of this family fall out. In all honesty, she hadn't begun to consider what would happen to their already splintered family without Dean. Sam and John barely got along with Dean's intervention and she couldn't imagine that this would pull them together. Hell, they were already fighting and he wasn't even gone yet. And what the hell was she going to do if Dean was gone?

They hadn't been back together that long but it was impossible to deny what was happening between them. It was just as impossible to think about going back to her old life. He had so easily worked his way back into her life. Maybe her resistance wasn't as strong as she had originally thought.

Now, she couldn't leave. She wouldn't leave. The noises in the waiting room—the intermittent paging of a doctor or nurse over the intercom and the din of the TV set to some infomercial- all slowly faded in the background as she heard the squeak of Sam's shoes. Tennis shoes.

A haphazard smile eased up over her mouth, completely incongruent with what she was feeling, as she very briefly pondered that choice in contrast with what most other hunters wore. His tennis shoes were sorely out of place. Then again, at times so was he.

"He's gonna be okay" Sam said after he sat next to her, offering a reassuring pat to the knee.

It was an awkward gesture, not because it was Sam but because neither of them believed the words. Okay, maybe Sam did but only because he wasn't going to accept any other answer. That was why he let his hand drop from her leg and slumped down in the chair with a sigh. "Listen, I know that this is crazy Maeby and all but… I get this feeling that Dean's… you know, here."

It was the nickname that perplexed her. Only Dean had ever used that name with her. No one else ever called and that was what spoke to her more than anything. That name alone made her smile with a hint of actual relief rather than sardonic decadence.

Sam misinterpreted that odd expression as one of disbelief. "Hey," he said in self-defense, "I know it's crazy. I do but… crazy is all we have left."

Her lips pressed together. She too had felt a certain something. Maybe it was a presence or something. She didn't quite have a name for it but she had done this job long enough to not doubt a feeling like this. "Yeah, it's crazy but… well, you could be right. I've felt something that…well, I don't know what it is but…yeah."

"I could have sworn I hear him when he was… back in his room."

"What did he say?" She asked, almost laughing this time in disbelief.

This time, the hope in his eyes faded just slightly. Not enough to stop him but not having definitive proof was something that would put a damper on his plans. "I… nothing, I didn't really hear anything. I just thought I could hear him. You said you felt something?"

She nodded. She didn't want to tell him that it felt like there was a spirit in the room but she probably didn't have to. "And when that glass broke… yeah, I've seen stranger things."

"We both have."

"Do you think he would really stick around here?"

"I don't know. Maybe. I would… after what happened. Maybe he doesn't know how to get back to his body."

Whatever optimism came with the idea that Dean was with them was quickly flattened by the understanding of that that meant. "So, what's the plan then? Even if he's here, we can't fix the damage and we can't force him back in his body if he's not… I mean aren't we in the same boat as before?"

Again Sam sighed, this time standing up. "I don't know. Not yet anyway but I'm not letting him go until we've run out of every option."

"Right so…."

This time he let himself smile. "I think I can figure out how to talk to Dean."

Her long body could become quite compact, Dean noted as he watched her sleep restlessly. After his brother left, Mae had found her way back to his room where she sat and watched him and he watched her. Oddly, she said nothing for the longest time until, seemingly out of nowhere, she started to cry. And she cried until he supposed she wore herself out. If he was able to reach out to her, he still would have let her sleep.

He knew that if she knew he could see her, she wouldn't have done it. Mavis was a prideful woman and he knew she would never have wanted to be seen a woman who wept for a man, least of all him. He wanted to think that maybe he was the only one she would do that for. And decided he would believe that because he needed to know there was at least one person, who wasn't related to him, who loved him enough to miss him. That person just happened to be the redhead he fell in love with when he was 6.

A few wayward strands of hair lay across her forehead haphazardly and were he corporal, he just might have brush them out of her face. Having fallen into a light sleep however, he hoped that she would stay that way as long as she could. He could have watched her sleep for hours.

"I don't know if you can hear me but I hope you can on some level. Mae, I love you. There are so many things we've screwed up and so many things I wish we coulda done different but at the end of the day… listen, I'm not gonna get all mushy on you when you can't even hear me. Just…everything between you an' me is square now, okay? I've got no regrets… aside from the whole dying thing. And the whole…" he cleared his throat, "uh, anyway, I love you."

* * *

><p>It was dark when Sam returned to the hospital. He was sort of surprised to see Mae inelegantly curled into a hard plastic hospital chair. Within a few seconds, she stirred, having only been dozing lightly and quite uncomfortably too. She blinked and squinted before she sat up.<p>

It was late enough that few people were walking the halls so the soft squeak of Sam's footfalls. They were unmistakable. With a sharp yawn, she stretched up. "What's that?" She asked, nodding to whatever he was carrying.

Sam came all the way into the room wearing a bashful expression, carrying a brown paper bag in his arms. "I said I had an idea," He said to her before speaking more generally to the room. "Hey. I think maybe you're around. And if you are, don't make fun of me for this, but um, well, there's one way we can talk."

He pulled out a box labeled Mystical Talking Board. Mae laughed a little, impressed now, "Oh dude, that is seriously dorky. And… actually a good idea."

Sam shrugged, "Yeah if he's here… and he'll go along with it."

"Well since we're throwing a middle school boy-girl party, you probably should have gotten some nurses and we could have played spin the bottle.

Sam circled around the bed and sat cross legged on the floor. Then he opened the box and took out the board. Mae however didn't join him. She didn't want her hope or fear or even skepticism to come into play. If Dean's spirit was around and he could talk to them like this, she wanted it to be all him. She wanted Sam to be right.

"Dean? Dean, are you here?"

Dean wondered for an instant about how odd it might look since no one else could see him. It was just Sam sitting on the floor with his Mystical Talking Board with Mae watching him. "God, I feel like I'm at a slumber party." Still, he sat down on the floor across from his brother, "All right, Sam. This isn't going to work. "

Sam glanced up at Mae and she shrugged. Sam placed his hands poised on the pointer and slowly it slid to the word 'Yes'. Sam and Mae gasped.

"You moved it."

Sam shook his head at her accusation.

"So that was…" She trailed off when Sam laughed in relief.

"It's good to hear from you, man. It hasn't been the same without you, Dean."

"Damn straight." Dean didn't care if they couldn't hear him; this was as close as he was going to come to it in this state.

The pointer slid with ease, as if under its own power. "Dean, what? H? U? Hunt? Hunting? What, are you hunting?"

The pointer slid back to 'yes'.

Mae shook her head as her breath caught in her throat. Why was he hunting? Didn't he know… again, she shook her head and tried to push those thoughts out of her mind.

"It's in the hospital, what you're hunting? Do, do you know what it is?" Sam asked again, a little slower this time. "What is it?

The pointer slid again, spelling out something. R. E. A. P.

"A reaper. Dean. Is it after you?"

The pointer slid to YES after Sam asked the question.

"If it's here naturally, there's no way to stop it."

Mae closed her eyes, pinching the bridge of her nose "Damn…" She muttered.

"Man, you're, um…"

"He's screwed."

"No. No, no, no, um, there's gotta be a way." Sam stood to pace, "There's gotta be a way. Dad'll know what to do."

Mae got out of the chair, chasing after Sam. "Sam, wait up!"

"No… dad'll know."

"Come on, there's no magic words to—"

"Shut up, okay? Just… he's not dead until he's dead so just shut up."

She pressed her lips together with a sigh, keeping pace with his long strides. The pair made their way down the hall to John's room. When they got there, they found the room empty.

"Dad." Sam whispered. "Damn it, where is he?"

Looking around the room, he noticed the journal and snatched it up. "We'll find something." He said when he turned to leave only to find Mae standing and blocking the doorway.

"Sam. Stop. Okay? Take a breath and think this through for just a second. Believe me, I'd like to tell myself that there's a reaper here for someone else but it's just as likely that it's here for Dean and I don't think we've got another ace up our sleeve on this. But let's face facts—"

"There aren't facts here Mae. Just… this is Dean we're talking about here. Doesn't that matter to you?"

"Of course! I... I do love your brother."

"Then help me, okay? What do you lose?"

"Nothing," she said softly, "but I don't know what we can do."

He nodded and accepted that the discussion wasn't over even as they went back to Dean's room because he didn't know what to do either. All he knew was he wasn't going to give up until…

"Hey. So Dad wasn't in his room." Sam said, presumably to Dean since Mae was well aware of the fact.

Sam took a seat on the edge of Dean's bed with their Dad's journal.

"Where is he?" Dean asked as if anyone would answer

"But I got Dad's journal, so who knows? Maybe there's something here. "

Mavis stood in the door frame with her arms crossed over her chest, watching Sam flip open the journal and leafed through it. Every so often he glanced over at Dean's unconscious form. Sam turned to a page that said "Reapers",

"Sam, what do you think you're going to find?"

"I don't know. I just… how can you not want to turn over every damn rock to save him?"

"Don't think I don't. I've said it before that that's not what I want. But Sam, he's been ripped apart from the inside out. Even if we can keep the reapers off his back, we can't knit him back together. Even the blackest of black spells I've heard of…there isn't one that leaves him like the Dean we know. And remember the last time we tried to bring him back?"

"Dean's here and I know he isn't ready to go."

Her head dipped down. "But we don't exactly get to pick to go when we're ready. I'd be dead already if that were the case and maybe he would too. All I know is that he wouldn't want to be kept alive like this," she gestured to his body, "and right now, that's all we can really give him."

"There has to be something Mae. There just… first mom, then Jess, now Dean… I can't lose anyone else to this fucking demon."

Of course she didn't have anything to say even if she wanted to make a retort of some kind.


	8. Chapter 8

~X~X~X~Then~X~X~X~

The knock on the door that morning was decidedly uncalled for. It was, Mae decided, entirely possible that Sam Winchester was a sadist. It was far too early. Granted, she and Dean had woke early and already showered. They weren't entirely awake and the surely weren't free from the lingering effects of the hangovers they were both gently nursing.

Neither of them would have minded going back to bed for a few hours. However, there was no talking Sam out of his need to get an early start. It was probably his revenge for their late night. Sam was chomping at the bit to get on with this case since last night. That was why Mae and Dean relented. They went with Sam to the Telesca's house but they stayed back in the car while he went inside. Sam wasn't gone very long, long enough though for Dean and Mae to both doze off.

True to his evil streak of the day, Sam returned to the car and honked the horn, laughing at their startled reactions as he got inside.

"Man, that is so not cool." Dean grumbled.

Mae sat forward, leaning her chin on the back of her folded hands on the back of the front seat.

Unperturbed by either hunter, Sam continued. "I just swept the Telesca house with the EMF. It's clean. And last night, while you two were-" He rolled his eyes "_out…_"

Dean smiled. "Good times."

Mae blushed beet red, despite not having done much of anything that night. "Nothing happened," she clarified.

The woman wasn't looking at him but he looked back at her, questioning why she would divulge that detail. Because it wasn't any of his brother's business and it wasn't true.

"I took the history of the house. No hauntings, no violent crimes, nothing strange about the Telescas themselves either."

"Busy boy." Mae muttered sarcastically.

Mae wasn't focused on him and it didn't seem like she would change her mind anytime soon. Shifting gears,, he turned his focus back to Sam. "All right, so if it's not the people and it's not the house, then, uh….maybe it's the contents—a cursed object or somethin'.

Sam shook his head. "The house is clean."

"Yeah, I know, you said that."

"No, I mean, it's empty. No furniture, nothin'."

"Where's all their stuff?"

* * *

><p>They were clearly out of place. The parking lot made that abundantly clear as they pulled into the parking lot. Posh cars, even though they were few, were parked in front of the auction house Sam had identified as being the latest destination of the Telesca's things.<p>

"Can I just state for the record this is not going to work?"

"Have a little faith Red. We're just trying to do our job, we've pulled off more difficult."

"Yeah but we didn't look like roadies for a grunge band. These aren't grunge people."

Sam was on his way inside, with Mae and Dean just behind him. However, Dean grabbed her wrist, tugging her back for just a second. "Hey, did I do something wrong?"

"Not yet but I'm sure you'll think of something," she said with a beautiful smile.

This would be easier if his stomach wasn't immediately filled with the fluttering wings of butterflies whenever she beamed her pearly whites at him. He wanted to be pissed off, not turned on. "I mean… you told Sam nothing happened."

Her lips twitched with the barest suggestion of a smirk but she kept it to herself. "Maybe you were a little more drunk than I was; Nothing did happen."

"_Something_ happened Mae."

Humor and annoyance accompanied her eye roll. "Oh yeah, in that case… want me to write up newspaper article to make sure everyone knows that we got drunk and made out last night and then you groped me and washed my hair in the shower this morning? You need me to tell your brother that?"

"No… I thought you and I were…."

"We are something," she chuckled, " but you're reading into this. Just because I don't want to go into detail with your brother about what happened doesn't mean that it didn't happen. I mean, believe me, he probably already thinks we've been screwing and…I didn't mean anything buy it, I just don't need him harping on me for it right now."

They weren't on the same page, not like he'd hoped. Although maybe this was all they could expect. It wasn't as if they standing on firm ground with each other. For the progress they had made and the ways they got each other, they still had to work around their often conflicting emotions. There was little Dean could do but agree with her. "Okay."

"Now, this, in there…that's going to be a disaster."

* * *

><p>Her prediction was more or less right. Things had gone well, until they had gotten kicked out. They didn't have nearly enough information to know what it was exactly they were supposed to fight or how.<p>

Sam on the other hand had managed to keep them from looking compete incompetent when it came to their back story. While she could have given a synopsis of _Le Bourgeois gentilhomme_ and Dean could faithfully recite the lyrics to Traveling Riverside Blues, neither skill came in as handy as Sam's recollection of Art History.

"C'mon Mae, you must have taken something like that when you were in college." Sam prompted after Dean claimed not to know him."

She cleared her throat. "Um… yeah, I took Tap as an American Art…Form."

That of course solicited quizzical stares from both brothers. "What? We weren't all pre-law! Some of us… were… dance majors."

Dean laughed. "Dance?"

"Shut up! Lest I remind you that a ballerina can kick your ass."

"What exactly did you think you would do with a degree in dance?" Sam asked, still surprised that Mae of all people would have chosen that sort of path.

"I… I liked dancing. As it happens, I also majored in ancient studies so clearly anyone who needed a girl who could pirouette and read Latin, I had it covered. I'll admit, I wasn't exactly sure what I was going to do but at least I wasn't trying to pick up chicks."

"Ooh, that would actually be a much better story Red." Jest and seriousness filled his hot gaze as he looked over her.

It was too weird to flirt back with him in front of his brother right then and the comment had brought everything to a strange halt. "Okay anyway, I'm pretty sure we have bigger issues than my educational forays."

"The providence?" asked Dean.

"Provenance." Sam corrected, "It's a certificate of origin, like a biography, you know? We can use 'em to check the history of the pieces, see if anything's got a freaky past."

"Huh. Well, we're not gettin' anything out of Chuckles, but, uh, Sarah?"

"Yeah. Maybe you can get her to write it all down on a cocktail napkin."

Dean chuckle. "Not me."

"Oh, no, no, no, no. Pickups are your thing, Dean. Even Mae's okay with loaning you out for the night, for the job."

Her mouth opened to make a retort but Dean beat her to the punch. "Maybe she could try and tap dance her way to the provenances but it wasn't my butt she was checkin' out."

"In other words, you want me to use her to get information."

"Sometimes, you gotta take one for the team. Call her."

* * *

><p>"Mae, are you trying to avoid me?"<p>

The motel room, with its oddly retro 1970's disco décor, had grown increasingly uncomfortable after Sam left on his date. She hadn't returned to her room and they had fallen into silence as they searched for something to do while they were waiting to find out more about the painting. Neither Mae nor Dean knew how they were supposed to act with each other in the sober light of day…or late afternoon. They had yet to find a comfortable middle where they weren't all over each other and doubting it or fighting the urge. Mae was having more difficulty with that than Dean was. Actually, Mae thought, Dean was really trying to adapt to her changing moods. It was chivalrous, in its own way.

But she could only ask him to do some much when she kept throwing him for a loop. So, when she moved off the bed and walked past him to get something from her duffel bag, he surged out of his chair to grab her and ask her the question that had been circling his mind.

She shook her head. "No."

He held her fast, both with the firm grip on her arm and a steely stare. It might have intimidated other women, even men, but it nearly made her giggle. Her full lips pressed together as she smothered the laugh and cleared her throat . "I'm not. I just… I feel so crazy when I'm around you."

"Crazy? What does that mean?" There was a touch of annoyance, an unintended hint of fire laced through his voice.

When she turned away with that heavy sigh, he let go of her arm but didn't back away from her. "Dean, I don't mean to push you away. I don't _want_ to push you away. But…" that pregnant pause made his stomach and heart sink, "I just can't make myself take that extra leap."

"That doesn't make any sense. You make it sound like I'm trying to force you into something or… maybe we don't feel the same way because for me, the idea of not being with you, not spending time with you seems a lot worse than any other alternative at this point."

She paused, frowned. "I have to tell you something."

It was the heaviest six words she could have said. Considering what they did for a so called living, considering what they knew about each other and what could leave her skittish, he didn't like what she might be keeping from him. Now, he backed away until the back his knees hit the bed and he sat with a heavy sigh.

"Well, fuck. That can't be good. Okay Red, lay it on me."

Tact wasn't always her most natural skill and she supposed that wasn't the best phrasing, considering the way she had been acting. That particular reaction however put her more at ease, enough to give a small simple chuckle.

She hadn't wanted it to be awkward like that. She didn't want him to feel like she was dropping a bombshell on him. Even if she was.

"Dean…" She moved towards him and rather than sit next to him at the edge of the bed, she sat on the side so that her back was mostly turned on him. "I'm not trying to lay anything on you. I'm actually trying to explain why I've been so weird."

"So you're aware that you are then?"

Looking over her shoulder, she shot him an annoyed glance that faded almost as soon as she saw the look on his face. It wasn't reproachful or sarcastic. It was actually concerned, maybe compassionate. "Yeah well, I'd have to be a real bitch not to notice. And I'm not that, at least I don't want to be that way with you."

"Then what is it?"

There was no subtle way to slide into it. She'd been trying to think of one, not just tonight but for some time now. So she would jump right in. "I got married."

It felt like a low blow, like he'd gotten his hopes up and the only thing stopping her was not that she was married but that she realized she couldn't go through with having an affair. "Wait, you… you're married? You don't want to sleep with me because you're married? Why the hell are you just bringing this up now?"

She wasn't sure how he jumped to that conclusion until she realized that he didn't know in the least what had actually happened. They had always had a connection, an almost innate knowledge of what the other was thinking or what they meant. This time, Dean was in the dark about so much. Any lingering hopes, ones she knew were flimsy at best, that she could avoid telling him about everything went flying out the window with that. "I was married. I'm not married now. My husband's dead."

At first, he was thrilled at that revelation but almost as quickly as relief rushed into his expression, he caught the sadness in her words. He saw that the point wasn't that she was no longer married or even that she had been in the first place; it was that it meant something to her. Somehow, that was a little worse for him. For the most part, he tried to avoid thinking about her past partners and love life because it led down a dark road. Yet he couldn't pretend that he was her one and only, even if he wanted to he couldn't. He didn't want it to mean anything with anyone else though.

"I didn't… I'm sorry."

"It's okay."

Those tiny, quiet words were fraught with emotion, too much for his liking. Looking over at her profile, he noted the tightness in her jaw, a sure sign she was trying to hold back any more emotions. God, he would have been happier if she had told him she was divorced and didn't know if she was ready. It wouldn't have even bother him that much if she was still married and she was cheating on her husband. What bothered him was the fact that she kept it a secret for so long.

"Then can you tell me what happened so I can stop guessing?" he hazarded the question.

"I killed him."

It must have been a joke. He knew Mae and he knew she wouldn't kill anyone, not a person anyway. Monsters, yet. And he knew her well knew her well enough too to know that she wasn't usually this emotional. On some level, she believed it even if he didn't.

"Maeby… this isn't funny."

"It's not meant to be. I've been trying to figure out how to tell you. Or even if I should tell you but it's there, every time I kiss you, every time you touch me… and I can't keep pretending it's going to go away."

She hadn't spoken of it in nearly 3 years, she hadn't been able to. Even speaking of her husband now brought a twinge of shame and infidelity because of her feelings for Dean. While she wanted to deny that they were stronger, she couldn't.

The look he gave her was a little pitying "And what, you're worried I might die? Because I promise you, I'm gonna die but it might not be for years."

She closed her eyes. "I know that. I'm not worried you'll die." she paused, sighed. "I'm worried I'll kill you."

It was almost too much to believe. So he laughed. "No offense sweetheart but I'm pretty sure I can handle you. You're tough but…I'm not about to get my lunch handed to me by a girl," he was half kidding but the joke didn't land. Mae didn't smile, she didn't even react. "C'mon Red… this isn't…How exactly do you think you killed your husband?"

"I don't think, I know exactly how I killed him; I beat him to death."

It was a few moments before he realized that she was serious. All of this seemed improbable if not impossible and he certainly didn't understand it. "Babe…What are you saying? Why would you do that?"

He knew her, maybe not as well as he thought once but he knew she wasn't a killer and she wouldn't do something like that. The redhead was fully capable of it but he didn't think she would. "You've totally lost me here" He said softly.

"I'm telling you, I killed him." Annoyance peaked slightly in her hushed tone. There wasn't a lot question to it

"Why?"

"I was possessed."

Her reaction was strange; Mae couldn't really blame herself, could she? She knew well enough the realities of the job. If she was possessed, she wasn't in control, she wasn't responsible. "Possession doesn't count, you know that. You didn't kill him, baby" he reminded her.

"Stop throwing out those pet names please. They just make me uncomfortable. Besides, while I didn't kill him because I wanted to, I created the opportunity because… "

"You didn't do this."

"Yes I did! You've never—you've never questioned that this is who you are, what you do. You've never wanted to try and be anything but a hunter."

"That's not true." For a moment, she paused and looked at him, marveling at the revelation before he continued. "But I had… responsibilities. I couldn't just walk away, not… not easily."

"Well… yeah. It wasn't exactly easy and I should have just stayed. I should have listened to Bobby more and I should have stayed with you. Instead I brought all of this back to someone who didn't deserve it. Possessed or not, my husband wouldn't have died that way if he hadn't met me."

"You and Sam… I swear." He said it with just a hint of sardonic mirth. "Listen Red, you don't control everything. Maybe there are thing you could have done differently but you didn't get him killed."

"Dean… I don't know about that. I just know that terrible things happen when I care about someone." He laughed then. "This isn't a laughing matter Winchester."

"I'm not laughing at you or this situation. But sweetheart, I'm not your husband. I mean possession I can handle, way better than marriage for the record."

At last he finally got a hint of a laugh out her. If only believing him could be that easy. She wanted it to be and she knew he wasn't Dan. He was a hunter. Dean was stronger, smarter and more equipped for this than her late husband was. In the same situation, he would have won and maybe he would have killed her trying to get the demon out of her. He wouldn't have just begged for her to stop and act normal.

It wasn't a matter of who could handle the situation or a demon or her; Dean could do all of that. It was because the only two men she could claim she loved could so easily face the same fate. "I could still-"

"Yeah you could but I'm a hunter and I'm pretty seasoned in this job." Uncannily, he reiterated her thoughts adding his own capper, "You're not going to get me killed because you care about me."

"I—I don't—"She only shook her head. "You act like it's crazy and you know it's not. You tell me why you've never looked for a girl you wanted more than sex with. You know we're not the kind of people to settle down and have normal lives because we never did. When I decided to get married, I threw someone right in the middle of this and I didn't even give him a choice. I didn't save him and it wouldn't have happened if I hadn't…"

Every impulse in his body told him he should reach out to her, physically and emotionally but he couldn't risk shutting her down when he was so close to the truth. So he kept digging. "If you hadn't what?"

Which brought her to her original concern. There was a sick irony to getting back together with Dean after all this time, considering how often forces seemed to conspire to keep them apart. "If I hadn't taken that damn call from your dad and—and… my whole life fell apart because of that phone call."

The fear and panic in her voice was something he was unaccustomed to and something he couldn't quite figure out. He was willing to believe her but he sure as hell didn't understand the connections she had made . "Wait, phone call? You mean when you and dad… I… can you take this from the top?"

"I guess I owe you that much since I brought it up. Don't get me wrong, it's not like I was married all that long, three months, when your dad called me telling me he had a lead on my parents. And at the time, it seemed credible. I mean, it was your dad… why would I question that? And…he would have known, right? If it was a trap or some demon bullshit, he would have seen through it because…it was John. That's what I thought."

"But it wasn't good." He said knowingly. The rest of the story he knew, from what she had told him and of course what he'd gone through during the whole thing. It did explain a few things.

This time, her sigh was one of relief almost. "Yeah and…I never thought that I'd end up screwing your dad. You maybe. I worried about that, seeing you again. A lot. Because I knew if I let you get close… I don't know that I would thought twice about cheating on him with you."

"Really?"

The much needed touch of humor brought a little smile and twinkle to her pale blue eyes when she looked over her shoulder. "Dude, that' not a compliment."

With a slight grin, he bumped his shoulder against hers. "Kind of, it is."

"Anyway," she said rolling her eyes goodheartedly, "I ended up cheating on my husband, with the wrong Winchester, after I had almost convinced myself that I could be a normal, boring person and… and you know, I spend the whole drive home wondering if I'm going to tell my husband. And, more annoyingly, wondering if I should call _you _and try to explain things to_ you_. When I finally get home, he's… tied up in the living room and, and I get my ass possessed."

He didn't care anymore if she clamed up. The woman he was very much in love with seemed so miserable, so hurt. He would never have assumed it but she seemed raw and vulnerable. Easing her over, he made her slide along the edge of the bed and finally, he put his arm around her shoulders. "Mae… I really didn't know. If I had, you know things would have been different."

She let him. She let him hold her and comfort her. She even leaned into his embrace. "Really? How? C'mon…you know my being married wouldn't have stopped you. Or me. And I can't imagine that my sleeping with you and then your dad would have made that any better."

It was impossible to know and yet he knew it. There was no deception or bravado in his claim and his belief that there very little that could truly keep them apart aside from her determination and a long lasting hurt. It was only believing that she had betrayed him that had driven him away. Knowing the truth, knowing what had really happened changed that for him for the most part. "For one, maybe we could have had this talk a hell of a lot sooner. Maybe I wouldn't have been as angry."

Nothing could help her hold back the tears now. "Well, things didn't go down that way and I don't know if for me I could have gotten here sooner. It doesn't matter now." She said as she tried not to sound like she was crying.

"Except this is rolling around that little red head of yours, kind of turning you into a crazy, unpredictable person."

At least he could make her laugh and make let her know that it didn't matter to him if she was emotive. "Yeah, except for that."

With a chuckle, he squeezed her tighter. "Mae… Jesus. Well don't we just have a ball of issues between us?"

"I'll say. And I feel so guilty." Now, she couldn't turn it off. She was going to spill her guts.

"What would you feel guilty about? You know better than to actually believe that you killed your husband when you were possessed and… it's not like you were trying to bang my dad. Everything else is just water under the bridge."

She shook her head. "No," she sighed, "You're right about John, that was totally accident. And no, _I_ didn't want to kill Dan personally. What I felt guilty about then was that I could barely look at you without… without thinking my marriage was a huge mistake. Don't get me wrong, I loved him and I wanted to be with him but I never got over you."

"You coulda fooled me."

She looked up at him. The hurt was evident on both their faces, her tear streaked cheeks doing little to help the fact. "I was aiming for that, Butch. Why do you think I acted like that around you? I couldn't let you try and you know, charm me. I would have ruined my marriage for you. Although, that seems like a moot point now."

"You could have told me you were married or that you didn't want me."

"I could have but…I didn't want you to know. I didn't wear my ring and I didn't tell you because of how I felt about you. I know, it's fucked up. I wasn't a good wife. I tried as hard as I could to be a real woman, a real wife but I was awful at it. Hell, if we had been together long enough he would have figured it out."

"Mae…"

"C'mon, if you were a regular everyday kind of guy, you wouldn't be so enamored with me. I'm pretty sure half of why we're even drawn to each other is because we're not normal."

"You don't know that. Hell, if I were a normal guy and I fell for you I might even take up the cause."

"So you like me so much you'd let me ruin your life?"

"Hell yes. Just like you do me. We're hunters and we're working this out. That's all that matters."

"I suppose. But…being with you … and don't get me wrong, it's nice. Because I want to be with you, sometimes it feels like I need to be with you. And I've always felt that way about you but because of that…" she took a deep breath followed by a heavy sigh, "I'm not even sure what the hell I'm doing with you half the time."

"Could be worse… Listen, I know I can't make you feel less guilty but if it helps, I understand and if there's anything I can do to make you more comfortable…"

Her eyes narrowed. "You could be a little meaner about all this… a little less understanding. After all, isn't Sam supposed to be the touchy feely one?"

His hand stroked her hair soft, almost hypnotically. "I'm making an exception for you."

Being held by Dean, letting him be there for her while she told him her deepest secrets was disconcerting and somehow reassuring at the same time. But she might have gone too far. "Geez…I think maybe I've said too much. I, I'm going back to my room, 'kay?"

"No, not okay. You're gonna stay here."

"I don't think that's a good idea. I'm not feeling very… awesome."

Dean shook his head, stroked her cheek and then her hair. What he was feeling for her wasn't just sympathy or love or pity or even empathy; it was all of that twisted with a selfish sense of happiness and glee at having Mavis finally come clean with him. From the beginning, he knew there was something more to her story, something she was keeping a secret from him. This was a success for him, on some level better than simply luring him into his bed for the night.

"You don't have to run away Mae. Not from me, not now. We can just hang out for the rest of the night. No pressure, no nothin'. I can't stand to see you go."

"You can't? Even after… I emotionally puked all over you?"

"Well you could do worse. I've said it before Red; I love you and this hasn't changed that. I think maybe I get you a little more now," his fingers laced through hers, "you're gonna have to do a lot worse than this."

Her smile reached her eyes this time and God, she wanted to have that same trust come as easily to her as it seemed to come to him. "Maybe just a drink then."

* * *

><p>So, I'm updating again and wanted to finish the rewrite on this story. I'll probably even add more! If that's something you'd like to see, let me know!<p> 


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9: Chapter 9**

~X~X~X~Now~X~X~X~

The two hunters remained in the hospital room, in an overwhelming silence punctuated and worsened by the sounds of the machines keeping Dean alive. Antiseptic and death, that's what hospitals always smelled like to Mavis Singer. Right now, death weighed heavier than the rest in the air only because of their other-side conversation with the man lying prone in the bed behind them.

She wasn't sure if Dean was still with them or not. Well, he was in spirit at any rate, for now at least. And Sam…well, she could hardly blame him but he wasn't really with her either. He was desperate and frantic. It was understandable. In fact, she wondered why she wasn't having the same reaction to this. Instead, she was eerily calm and perhaps a little complacent.

"Sam, stop." She placed her hand on his to get him to keep from flipping through the pages of his father's journal with increasing flurry.

"No…no. He's alive."

She said his name with more firmness and a squeeze. "Listen to me, if Dean is right and this is a reaper… we can't do anything. Not just because we can't kill it but because he wouldn't want us to."

His expression was heartbreaking. "You really think Dean wants to die?"

"Of course not. But he doesn't want to live if he's not supposed to and you know that. We made a mistake last time."

"Yeah and we saved his life."

"And he was a delight about it too. Please. Let's find John and… figure out where to go from there."

"I don't get you sometimes. I thought you loved him."

She closed her eyes, so tired of the question and its implications. So tired of knowing that the only person she hadn't told and the only person who never asked wasn't likely to anytime soon. Her eyes opened, a sharper glint now there. "You know that's not fair. You know I love him. I wouldn't be here if I didn't. And because I love him…I don't want to see you do something stupid and I don't want to make things worse for him."

Her words drifted over him without truly impacting upon him or his actions. "Mae… I need your help."

"I'm not against helping you or Dean. I don't know what I can do. It's not like I'm holding on to some secret and am waiting 'til the last minute to pull it out of my ass." In a very maternal gesture, she cupped his cheek. "You need some rest."

He shook his head. "No, Dean'll be pissed if I don't chase down every lead."

She shut the journal closed, almost threw it across the room until she decided against it. "There aren't any more leads Sam! This isn't about magic or anything _we_ know about. His body is broken… so even if we put him back in there…. If he's still around, you should take the chance to tell him… whatever else you have to tell him. I'm going to find John."

* * *

><p>Mae left the room and kept walking until she found herself alone in a hall. "Dude… if you can hear me Dean, please… please tell me…. Something. I don't know what. I'm not ready to lose you yet. Please."<p>

Oh yes, there was her desperation, her tears and everything she managed to keep tightly unwraps. That pain of knowing she was about to lose someone she cared about, someone she'd loved almost since she could remember, turned over and over in her gut. It wasn't her fault, not this time but she felt guilty all the same. This time was worse because she knew that her feelings for Dean were so much more intense, more confusing and maybe if she had been there…

Maybe, she wondered, it was strange that she wasn't as convinced as Sam that Dean could be brought back or fixed. But maybe it was because of the way the had both lost someone close to them. She knew he thought there was more he could do and if he had done something Jessica would have stood a chance and she knew if she hadn't followed her instincts and training, Dan would be alive.

No, she ordered herself, there wasn't time for this now. Maybe, just maybe John Winchester was holding out on them.

* * *

><p>He had been holding out on the kids but for good reason. He was certain if he had told Mae, she would have tried to stop him. Sam might have too but he had his doubts on that count. Certainly Mae, considering who he was going to try to deal with.<p>

John let the thoughts leave his mind as he finished the drawing the chalk symbol on the floor of the boiler room. Several candles and a black bowl completed the setting for the ritual. All he had to do was call forth the demon. He chanted in Latin.

This wasn't any mamby pamby demon. No, this one would demand a blood sacrifice. He slit his palm open, drawing blood and let drop into the bowl the bowl. The match he light set the bowl of powered continents alight. The room went dark and he was alone until a hand grabbed his shoulder. "What the hell are you doing down here, buddy?"

"I can explain."

"Yeah? You're going to explain to security. Come on. You follow me."

John pulled out the colt and cocked it. "Hey. How stupid do you think I am?"

When the man's eyes turned to that eerie glow, it only went to prove just how good John was at this job. "You really want an honest answer to that?"

The two men, obviously possessed, who accompanied the demon stalk by and took their positions behind John.

"You conjuring me, John. I'm surprised. I took you for a lot f things. But suicidal reckless wasn't one of them."

"I could always shoot you."

"You could always miss." He said with a laugh, "And you've only got one try, don't'cha? Did you really think you could trap me?"

"Oh, I don't want to trap you." He lowered the gun, "I want to make a deal."

~X~X~X~

At first he'd been furious with her. Perhaps because he knew Mae was right. She had just gotten there sooner. Try as he might, he couldn't ignore her point, her words and more than anything the look in her eyes. He knew what he saw there. It was the same thing he had felt after he lost Jess. Only Mae seemed better at keeping it inside, keeping herself under control.

Beside Dean's bed. Sam stood with his hands in his pockets. Alone. No one else, either spirit or flesh joined him except for his unconscious brother. "Dean, are you here?"

He looked around, hoping for some sort of a sign from his brother again. "I couldn't find anything in the book. I don't know how to help you. But I'll keep trying, all right? As long as you keep fighting. I mean, come on you can't, you can't leave me here alone with dad, we'll kill each other, you know that. Dean, you've got to hold on. You can't go, man, not now. We were just starting to be brothers again. Can you hear me?"

* * *

><p>There was no real explanation she could give about what happened next, not if she were asked. The hospital had grown unnervingly quiet; it was a place that didn't get quite like this. There was always some kind of noise underlying the polite quietness. When the air grew still, it went cold as her next exhale was as visible as it would have been on a cold winter day.<p>

Something was here. For a moment, she thought something had happened to Dean but she would have heard the alerts going off in the hospital, right? It didn't feel like Dean either. Her skin hadn't crawled in the same way it was crawling now and the hair on the back of her neck didn't prick up like now. She was about to dash back to his room when the specter, at least that's the only way she could classify it, was in front of her.

Her heart rate rose and she felt genuine fear only because she didn't know what the hell she was looking at. On second thought, she recognized the specter. It was the same white haired woman she had been seeing in Idaho. It took her breath away.

"What do you want?" She finally managed to whisper.

The woman didn't say a word. A long, bony finger extended from her hand as she pointed down the long hallway. Mae shook her head. "I don't understand."

She pointed more emphatically this time.

"Who are you?"

The woman didn't speak yet Mae most surely heard the word 'run' in her mind. For another moment she hesitated before she felt compelled to do so. Time seemed to slow as she rushed down the hall in the direction the old spirit pointed. Her boots squeaked with haste until she came to a screeching halt at the end of the hall. No further instructions had been given and she didn't have any idea where she was headed.

Why she trusted the direction, she didn't know. Just when she was about to turn back, the woman appeared again and pointed the way. Mae would run and the woman kept appearing until she found her way into the basement. In hindsight she should have wondered why no one stopped her or why the halls were so empty. By then however, she heard voices in the boiler room.

* * *

><p>Inside the boiler room, John, the demon and his minions stood around the symbol John had drawn on the floor.<p>

"It's very unseemly, making deals with devils. How do I know this isn't just another trick?"

"It's no trick. I will give you the Colt and the bullet, but you've got to help Dean. You've got to bring him back."

"Why, John, you're a sentimentalist. If only your boys knew how much their daddy loved them."

"It's a good trade. You care a hell of a lot more about this gun than you do Dean."

"Don't be so sure. He killed some people very special to me. But still, you're right, he isn't much of a threat. And neither is your other son. You know the truth, right? About Sammy? And the other children?"

He wasn't looking to have a heart to heart with a demon but he knew it was all a part of the demon's game. "Yeah. I've known for a while.

"But Sam doesn't, does he? You've been playing dumb."

"Can you bring Dean back? Yes or no?"

"No. But I know someone who can. it's not a problem."

"Good. Before I give you the gun, I'm going to want to make sure that Dean's okay. With my own eyes."

"Oh, John, I'm offended. Don't you trust me?" John shook his head slowly "Fine."

"So we have a deal?"

"No, John, not yet. You still need to sweeten the pot."

"With what?"

"There's something else I want, as much as that gun. Maybe more."

* * *

><p>Full of adrenaline and a foolhardy notion that anything she might find inside would be something she could handle, Mae burst through the door of the boiler room.<p>

John and three other men were in the room. At first she was confused, opening her mouth to question the hunter when the other man turned to face her. Yellow eyes. Her heart stopped. The moment was frozen; she couldn't breathe, she couldn't blink, and she most certainly couldn't piece things together in the few seconds she had.

Those eyes were familiar, painfully familiar. It wasn't just a lingering memory either. No, she knew this demon and would know it anywhere. Those eyes… there was something more to them. A memory, one that was buried deep in her subconscious. But those eyes brought back all of her most excruciating memories in one fell swoop.

Then he smiled. The smile was sickening, chilling as he said 'deal's done John' without ever taking his eyes off hers. And just like that, he vanished. Black smoke, demons, left the bodies of the orderlies who had been in the room as well. They dropped to the ground. Under other circumstance John or Mae would have checked on them.

Time kicked in, hard as her eyes focused on John again. "What did you do?" She tried to yell at him but her voice only managed to come out just above a whisper. "What did you do?"

He spoke firmly, sympathetically. "Mae…"She shook her head, backing away, "Let me explain."

The words hissed with venom but she didn't raise her voice. "What the hell did you do?"

"The only thing I could do. You didn't want Dean to die, did you?"

Hysteria, hurt, anger, they all started to line her vision as her confusion began to give way. "You can't turn this around…you… he's a demon! He's _the_ demon." Her voice finally broke through.

"Mavis—"

She didn't let him finish as an overwhelming feeling of urgency came over her again; she turned on her and made a mad dash back up to Dean's room.

* * *

><p>There was a flurry of activity at Dean's room by the time she reached the door, panting. Doctors and nurses surrounded his bed, looking him over. She couldn't get in the room but at least Sam was in the hall.<p>

"Hey."

The woman was in good shape so he had to wonder why she was out of breath and where she had been or come from. "What—what's happening?"

"I—I don't know exactly. But he woke up."

"Woke up? He just…" And it all made sense. "woke up." She repeated with a little more distain.

Sam didn't pick up on it, he was all too hopeful. "He's gonna be okay."

"Yeah," of that Mae didn't doubt, 'but at what cost?" she muttered to herself.

Finally, Sam took note of her agitated appearance. "Hey, are you okay?"

The truth twisted her gut too much right then and because she didn't know for sure and in that moment, it would only cause a fight, she shook her head she told him she was fine. He didn't buy it but something had turned the tide for his brother and that's what he wanted to focus on.

"He's asking for you, both of you. It should be alright for a few minutes." A doctor interrupted whatever Sam was planning to day to her.

"Great," Mae said, crossing her arms over her stomach.

The waited until the hospital personnel cleared the room before they went in. Sam's smile was brighter than hers was. Mae in fact looked pale, like all the blood had drained out of her.

"Hey Red." His voice was gruff, deeper than normal due to the intubation. "Sammy."

The smile Dean wore now was almost enough to bring forth a real smile rather than the fake one that made her lovely lips tremble. "Don't everyone all speak at once."

"Dude, you have no idea what just happened." Sam was downright cheerful, giving little thought to anything except that his brother was safe and sound now.

"You don't say. Where's dad?"

"I—I don't know. He took off. Mae, were you able to find him?"

Had she ever found him. Opening her mouth, she tried to say something, anything but all she was able to do was stammer. "I—" her hand trembled as it fluttered near her throat. "I need some—air."

"Hey, hey now," Dean reached out for her. She must have still been mad at him he assumed and he wanted to reassure her. Moreover, he wanted to reassure himself, "Sam, you wanna give us a minute."

"Yeah, yeah sure I guess."

The tall hunter got in her way, silencing her protest and keeping her in the hospital room with Dean. "What's wrong?"

With an upsetting frown on her face, Mae stepped closer to the bed. Damn it if she wasn't hopeful and happy to see him alive and well. Her heart swelled looking down at him. She couldn't enjoy it, she couldn't keep the promise she had made earlier and she couldn't bring herself to tell Dean anything about his father.

"We didn't know if you'd make it."

Dean grabbed her hand, squeezed. "I'm just fine babe."

He pulled her, urging her to sit on the side of the bed. "You know I do believe I owe you a kiss."

"Why?" she said with a fretful laugh.

"Turns out we probably could have used your help." He pulled her closer, put a hand on the back of her head and gently guided her in for a kiss.

It was a nice kiss. Despite her swirling emotions she let herself enjoy it. It broke when she laughed at the beeping heart monitor that grew more instant during the kiss. "You could really use some mouthwash."

Laughing, he cupped her cheek. "Then we'll save it for later."

"Dean…" she shook her head, still unable to bring the words forward.

Their moment wasn't meant to be because Sam picked that time to come back to the room. "I think the doctors want to talk to you."

Maybe he should have waited, he thought, in case he was interrupting something. But Mae and his bother didn't appear to be too deeply involved at the moment. "And I should let you get some rest." The redheaded woman said as she stood.

But Dean kept hold on her hand. "I'm not tired. You can stay."

* * *

><p>AN Remember, I live for feedback so drop me a line or a review if you like the story!


	10. Chapter 10

~X~X~X~Then~X~X~X~

Neither Mae nor Dean spent the evening the way either of them predicted; Dean thought he would end up in bed with her, just with less clothes and more than a crappy movie on TV. He hadn't anticipated the outpouring of her confession. It put things into perspective, at least better perspective for him. All this time, he had hoped she would open up and tell him the truth, even if he wasn't wild about it.

Honestly, he didn't know what he was expecting, only that there was something in her mind that was keeping this from being easy. It might have been crazy but he knew, he knew as much as he knew anything, that what was in her heart was the same as what was in his heart. As much as he didn't believe in it with Mae could make an exception in believing that a person could meet 'the one'.

Now, he wasn't entirely certain that she had reached that conclusion yet. She loved him, he was pretty sure of that. She hadn't really told him but he knew she loved him. It had always been true, ever since they were kids really and before they could put a label on that feeling. Maybe not labeling it would help. And to his surprise, he still felt like all this was worth it. He didn't often consider wanting or even needing to be with someone, a woman to be more specific, who he could be himself with, who he could be happy with even when he wasn't getting what he had planned on getting.

That mane of red hair smelled like vanilla and sandalwood, he decided. It was a seductive scent, less fruity than it usually smelled. Maybe, he thought, she too had anticipated something more from that night. Despite having agreed to pursue the physical aspect of this less fervently, that need still hung heavily between them.

They both approached it differently. He wanted to jump in head first, get the awkward and nervous stuff out of the way first. Once that tension was gone, maybe they could actually get along. Mae had a different idea, one that made a little more sense now but one that still spoke of a romantic connection she tied to a physical relationship. Still, he let her take the reins on this one. In this case, he needed her to be the one who said it was the right time because she was different. She wasn't a one night stand so it mattered.

Now, she lay curled up with him in the bed, dozing in a cathartic slumber. The state of their relationship puzzled him. Never had it been safe or comfortable enough to be with a woman and spend the night with her devoid of sex. It wasn't actually something he'd sought out but this wasn't bad or unpleasant. He was already far more intimate with her than he had ever been with nearly anyone. And this was a woman who less than a year ago, he thought had betrayed him more than anyone could have.

But that was done. The feelings he had for her back then were something he could feel all too strongly, even when he hadn't wanted to feel that way at all. There had rarely been a time when he didn't feel that pull towards her. If he wasn't careful, he knew, he could be completely obsessed with her. He could be almost totally content with her. And just her. That scared him.

Mae was his girl. And for the time being, she was all his. Even if it wasn't entirely the way he wanted her. Yet. They'd made progress, were making progress and given enough time, things would be where they were supposed to be again. She wore his ring, on her finger rather than around her neck and she was here now. But she'd kept that ring for years, just like he had. It was impossible to deny that they'd never gotten over each other.

It was a little maddening and counter-intuitive to be and do normal things with a woman. He felt as if he didn't take advantage of their time together that it might not come again. Even having with Mae being the woman in question, he wasn't sure that they would ever be alone together when she wanted him and he wanted her. Everything could fall apart again but if whatever they were doing had any sort of chance, if they were going to stay on friendly terms, it was important to do this part.

* * *

><p>Objectively, Sam knew his date with Sarah wasn't supposed to be a date. But she didn't know that and damned if he wanted to have the same illusion. She was a nice girl, not just nice but smart, funny and kind. He knew he needed to be more distant and far less taken with her. That was impossible.<p>

What he could control was exactly how involved they would become. Sex was out of the question. If he was more like his brother, he would have started here but wasn't like that. He wasn't about to get more involved with her when there was a long list of reasons he couldn't be with her.

He didn't know if the same could be said for Dean and Mae. He was a little hesitant to go back to the motel, not knowing what he might stumble upon. The two were…involved. Dean was in love with Mae, dangerously so. And Mae was…well, Mae was a little harder to pin down but this didn't seem to be particularly casual or business as usual for her either.

Things were odd between them Sam noted. Not that things had been normal between Mae and Dean in sometime. Since she had shown up on the scene, he thought. But there was no spell, no unmentioned tragedy or hostility linger between them… at least none that he knew of, that would contribute to their odd behavior. That was the only way to gauge it, odd.

Maybe that was the issue, there was nothing lingering and they would have to face each other. They would have to see if they could spend time together, if the driving force behind being together was wanting to be together. Sam suspected neither of them had done that with another person before. His brother barely had one 'real' relationship under his belt, Mavis notwithstanding. And considering that she was still a hunter, had been for some number of years, it wasn't likely that she had done much better.

The pair not only had to work out normal relationship things but all that on top of their past and the trials that came with being a hunter. He smirked. It would be interesting to see his brother squirm.

Sam didn't enter the motel room to find Mae and Dean in any sort of compromising position, as he had partly feared. They were all business, researching and checking weapons. Dean sat on the bed, sharpening a knife. Sam had joined Mae at the table to do more research. The pair had exchanged a look briefly when he entered but said nothing more. He was expecting his brother to chide or tease him about coming back before morning. If Dean had been in his place, he most certainly wouldn't have.

"So, she just handed the providences over to you?" Dean asked after Sam had told them as much.

"_Provenances_."

His correction and Dean's faltering repetition made Mae smirk ever so slightly.

"Yes. I went back to her place, I got a copy of the papers."

"And?"

"And nothing, that's it. I left."

"You didn't have to con her or do any special favors or anything?" Dean was only partly teasing and it brought a questioning expression to Mae's face.

What exactly had he done in the name of 'research'? She had certainly never done anyone special favors for information. Implied and suggested yes but never actually going any further. Well, much further. And Sam liked the girl too much to con her she thought.

"Dean, would you get your mind out of the gutter, please?" Sam spoke up before she could chide Dean.

Unperturbed, Dean laughed. "You know, when this whole thing is done, we could stick around for a little bit."

"Why?"

His brother could be too obtuse at times and he too often had a one track mind. "So you can take her out again. It's obvious you're into her, even I can see that."

The suggestion made him too uncomfortable. Mae understood the feeling all too well. At the same time, she was on Dean's side on this one. For all the times he'd been a bad influence on her, this was one area she thought he was helping her get better. Maybe Sam wasn't quite ready yet though.

He deferred the offer, as quickly as possible. "Hey, all right, I think I got somethin' here." Mae leaned over to look at the papers and Dean joined. With the papers in one hand, his other hand fell on her shoulder, kneading lightly.

"Portrait of Isaiah Merchant's family painted in 1910."

"Now, compare the names of the owners with Dad's journal."

Dean took a seat. "First purchased in 1912 to Peter Simms. Peter Simms murdered in 1912. Same thing in 1945. Huh. Same thing in 1970." He read as Sam pointed out the entries in John's journal.

"Then stored until it was donated to a charity auction last month, where the Telescas bought it. So, what do you think, it's haunted or cursed?"

"Either way, it's toast."


	11. Chapter 11

~X~X~X~Now~X~X~X~

Before too long, Dean's doctor was in the room and had set about examining him with a natural shock. After all, he'd been on death's doorstep only moments before and he'd all but said to them that Dean was a goner. The first chance she got however, Mae slipped out of the hospital room. She knew she couldn't keep her face neutral and any expression other than relief would seem weird and out of place. If the doctor wasn't there, if Sam wasn't there, Dean would have followed her. But he didn't. She didn't get far, only the hallway outside his room, close enough to hear the doctor.

"I can't explain it. The edema's vanished. The internal contusions are healed. Your vitals are good. You have some kind of angel watching over you. "

"Thanks, doc."

Mae tried to muster a thankful smile when the man passed out the door, nodding to her. The smile only served to highlight that she wasn't okay. Her chest was tight and she couldn't breathe. It wasn't just panic inducing but painful, as if her breath was being ripped out of her lungs along with everything else in her chest cavity. Her hand braced on the wall behind her.

Everything seemed to be hitting her now. Something happened aside from John's basement deal and the reappearance of that strange white haired woman; she didn't know what exactly had happened to her. The first thought that tumbled through her mind was that Dean had let go. She didn't know why. For a moment, she knew he was dead but it only lasted that moment before she felt a strange rush. It was a feeling just as unfamiliar and unknown as the first one but then he was back.

Dean was back and while medical science couldn't explain it, Mae knew it was whatever John had traded for Dean's life. And with _that_ demon, of all the demons he could have summoned. God, the thought of _him_ turned her stomach and she thought she might throw up right there.

It wasn't until she looked into those eyes that it was all coming together. Those connections however did not ask the more pressing questions. Like, why was John making a deal with that particular demon, demon the Winchesters had been after for year. Why did she have to be wrapped up with that? And how long had John been planning something like this?

This was not supposed to happen. Things were not supposed to be this way. They hadn't exactly had easy lives but it was never like this. Bobby was right; they had set something off at some point and now they were paying for it. This day was just getting worse and worse.

* * *

><p>When he finally came up from the boiler room to visit Dean, John was greeted with an icy stare from the red head in the hall. He wish Mae hadn't seen what she did and judging from her slight, pale form sitting on the floor with her legs pulled up under her chin, she did too.<p>

"How's Dean?"

It would have surprised her if he was anything but blunt. Perhaps he thought that was an easy, considerate question. "He's fine, great in fact. Until he finds out what you did."

"What are you going to tell him?"

While she felt better physically, she was emotionally drained and completely unsure of what to tell him. But she knew this was a secret that wouldn't keep. "What am I going to tell him? What do you think I'm going to tell him! I'm gonna tell him the truth."

"You can't do that. You don't know the whole truth."

There were more than a few things that was true for and she knew that even if she did on this one, it would be an uphill battle getting Dean to believe her. Still, she wasn't about to ease up on this. Because it was slightly more dignified, she stood in spite of her shaky legs.

"I've got a lot of parts that are coming together to make a very pretty puzzle. So, I know enough. You made a deal with a demon, that demon—the demon who, if you need a refresher has quite nearly ruined the lives of your kids and killed your wife and hasn't exactly been so sweet to me either… so you make a deal? And Dean's back! I don't know what you were thinking-" Her voice raised, broke and she nearly shouted all of it in the hall before John placed his hand on her shoulder.

"He's my son. I'll never win father of the year but I would give anything to keep him safe."

Her head was shaking, her eyes were rimmed with tears and her face kept scrunching with the effort to keep from crying. "What the hell did you trade to make that deal John?"

"Like I said, you don't know the whole truth so you have to trust me that I'm doing the best thing I can do here."

* * *

><p>"So you said a Reaper was after me?"<p>

"Yeah."

"How'd I ditch it?"

"You got me. Dean, you really don't remember anything?"

"No. Except this pit in my stomach. Sam, something's wrong."

The knock at the door drew the brothers' attention to their father now as he lingered in the doorway. He didn't have time to fight with Mae all day so he'd sidestepped her to see his eldest son. "How you feeling, dude?"

"Fine, I guess. I'm alive."

"That's what matters."

"Where were you last night? Sam had fire in his eyes, directed towards John but it wasn't his brother Dean was mostly focused on as she slipped in the room behind his father. With her arms crossed over her midsection, Dean knew the redhead knew the answer to that. There was something small and closed off about her that told him that she knew something they didn't.

"I had some things to take care of."

"Well, that's specific."

"Come on, Sam." Dean pleaded. Could those two go for 5 minutes without fighting, he wondered.

"Did you go after the demon?

"No."

"You know, why don't I believe you right now?"

John wasn't entirely sure if Mae was going to say anything. Anything that she might say would only egg Sam on. "Can we not fight? You know, half the time we're fighting, I don't know what we're fighting about. We're just butting heads. Sammy, I, I've made some mistakes. But I've always done the best I could. I just don't want to fight anymore, okay?"

The sentiment was so out of character, for John at any rate, that all of the young hunters were taken aback. "Dad, are you all right?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm just a little tired. Hey, son, would you, uh, would you mind getting me a cup of caffeine?"

"Yeah. Yeah, sure."

Sam left, still frowning but compliant. Mae however, just hovered. John's eyes followed his youngest son for a moment longer until they reached the redhead. There was judgment in her eyes and the only reason he didn't try to cajole her into leaving was because she was a wild card right then. Maybe this was enough pressure to keep her quiet for now. And maybe it would help for her to hear most of what he had to say.

"What is it?"

"You know, when you were a kid, I'd come home from a hunt, and after what I'd seen, I'd be, I'd be wrecked. And you, you'd come up to me and you, you'd put your hand on my shoulder and you'd look me in the eye and you'd... You'd say 'It's okay, Dad'. Dean, I'm sorry."

Again, the man wasn't acting like the John Winchester they all knew. It was too weird. "What?"

"You shouldn't have had to say that to me, I should have been saying that to you. You know, I put, I put too much on your shoulders, I made you grow up too fast. You took care of Sammy, you took care of me. You did that, and you didn't complain, not once. I just want you to know that I am so proud of you."

"This really you talking?"

"Yeah. Yeah, it's really me."

"Why are you saying this stuff?"

Mae closed her eye. She hoped to God she was wrong when she thought she knew the answer to what John traded. Because Dean's proclivity for shrugging off emotional moments was nothing compared to John's. This was not going to make Dean happy in the least. And God, if her heart didn't go out to Dean; he sounded so young, almost childlike in his replies. While her eyes were closed, John moved closer to the bed and put a hand on his son's shoulder. "I want you to watch out for Sammy, okay?"

"Yeah, dad, you know I will. You're scaring me."

"Don't be scared, Dean."

John leaned in now to whisper the last bit of advice he could give his son. Dean pulled back in shock, as he processed and contemplated what the hell all that could mean. And then his father left, left him staring at his retreating form.

Dean looked over to Mae know, wondering if _that_ was what he saw on her face. Had his dad told her this thing too? Did he trust her to do that more than he trusted him. Well, maybe Mae would have been able to because he knew he couldn't.

Mae wasn't sure if she should follow or stay with Dean. The love of her life won out. "What did he say to you?" She asked, gaging the shocked expression on his face.

"I… I don't really know."

What could she say to him to make things better? She wasn't sure. She didn't think there was any right words. And it broke her heart. "Dean…"

"What?"

She couldn't tell him a damn thing. She wanted to, she wanted to spill her guts but she didn't know if it was to help him or make herself feel better. In the end, she just didn't know. "I…I'm really glad you're okay."

He knew she must have been incredibly shaken up because of all of this. If she thought he was going to die, she certainly wasn't taking it well. He liked the idea because he wasn't sure she would have always felt that way. But he wasn't dying now. There was no reaper, no demon on their trail. Everything was all right, except for her. "What's wrong then?"

"I…I'm sorry Dean. It's been a rough couple of days and I don't really know what to say or do so… so I just need… I don't know what I need."

"C'mere." He tugged on her hand, pulling her a bit closer, "It'll be okay."

Her laugh was twisted with a heavy sigh. "Yeah, sure."

* * *

><p>Sam walked back to the room carrying a cup of coffee. As he passed by a room, he cast a casual glance there and saw his father on the floor. "Dad?"<p>

The cup fell from his hand, everything seemed to slow as he rushed to his father's side and called out for help.

* * *

><p>Dean had coaxed her on to the narrow hospital bed, letting her lay her head on his shoulder.<p>

"Dean, I want you to know because I couldn't say it to you before, I love you."

Yeah, he thought, she had been shaken up. It was nice to hear all the same. "So do I have to nearly die to get you to say that to me again?"

"No, you try that again and I'm kicking your ass."

He eased her head up now and cupped the side of her face. "You never know which one I might like more."

She knew what he was trying to do and appreciated it even if she didn't feel very light right then. Only a small curve of her lips was his reward. That look, her pale, tear streaked face only confirmed the feeling in the pit of his stomach that something was wrong. Hell, he didn't even have to look at her to know she knew _something_ about it.

He didn't have time to ask her as Sam burst into the room. "C'mon! It's dad."

* * *

><p>Once again, a crowd of doctors and nurses attempt resuscitation, this time on John. Sam, Dean and Mae stood in the doorway as a nurse tried to push them out.<p>

"No, no, no, it's our dad. It's our dad! Come on." He plead the last part, either to the nurse or their father.

"Okay, stop compressions." One of the doctor's said.

"Come on, come on." This time, it was directed at his dad.

"Still no pulse."

"Okay, that's it everybody. I'll call it. Time of death: 10:41 am."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12:

~X~X~X~Then~X~X~X~

In anyone else's world, breaking into an auction house warehouse and burning a haunted painting would have been…well, it wouldn't have happened. However, the two Winchester brothers and Mavis Singer didn't really live in anyone else's world. All in all, it was a fairly uneventful night for them as they broke in with relative ease, found the portrait, stole it and lit it up.

They, Sam and Mae, were more than ready to hit the road but for different reasons. Sam was uncomfortable because of all the feelings that had come up since Jessica's death, this wasn't one he'd expected. He was unsure about those feelings. Or rather, he was quite sure about them and about Sarah. He liked her far too much for his own good and for her own good as well.

That voice in the back of his mind pointed out that Mae and Dean were trying on some level. It wasn't exactly a real relationship but it seemed as close to one as anyone could get while hunting. But Sarah wasn't Mae and he wasn't Dean so there wasn't any chance for anything more.

Besides, those two had issues, more than their share by most standards and the likelihood that she would stick around for the long haul was slim, in his assessment. They had their own hurdles but they needed to work out all the loose ends that were left from their teen years. After that, maybe things would fall apart, maybe they wouldn't but he wasn't sure they could have this relationship and hunt.

For his brother's sake, and Mae's too, he hoped it would work out. They were a good match for each other. He hadn't had the opportunity to see his brother in a real relationship. Ever. Not that he was looking for that but he didn't really think his brother was capable of keeping one. But maybe that was more the job than his personality. Dean was sweet to her.

It was such an odd term to associate with his brother but it fit. The woman was out of sorts because of it too. Sam suspected that was part of why Dean did it, not that he didn't care about her or want her to be comfortable. It was actually kind of nice to see them both somewhat out of their elements but not fighting it entirely. And, he stopped himself, he didn't need to be analyzing their relationship. It was just another distraction from the issue at hand; getting the hell of Dodge before he had to deal with anything else.

Since she hadn't spent that much time in her own room, Mae had packed her things up quickly and had joined the brothers in their room. Dean came out of the bathroom, uncharacteristically frazzled. "We've got a problem, I can't find my wallet."

"How is that our problem?" Sam shared a conspiratorial glance with her.

"'Cause I think I dropped it in the warehouse last night."

"Dude, how the hell did you do that?" Mae asked. They were vigilant because, duh, she thought, they were committing a crime. It didn't do any of them any good, considering the number of connections they had made to be that careless.

"You're kidding, right?"

"Yeah, it's got my prints, my ID—well, my fake ID, anyway. We've gotta get it before somebody else finds it, come on."

* * *

><p>They found themselves back at the warehouse, searching hurriedly through the aisles for Dean's wallet.<p>

"How do you lose your wallet, Dean?"

He just shrugged, as if it wasn't all that much of a worry at this point. They kept looking until Sarah came into the warehouse and took notice of the three of them.

"Hey, guys."

Sam put down a piece he had been holding and attempted to look nonchalant. "Sarah! Hey."

It shouldn't have made her smirk and yet it did. There was something all too humorous about Sam trying to look casual.

"What are you doing here?" Sarah asked. She looked genuinely happy to see them, well Sam anyway, back at the auction house.

"Uh, we—we're leaving town, and you know, we came to say goodbye."

It wasn't a great front and Mae thought it was because he liked her so much that he was unable to come up with a better line.

Dean however took that chance to correct his brother. "Oh, what are you talkin' about, Sam? We're stickin' around for at least another day or two." Everyone but Dean seemed confused by this. "Oh, Sam, by the way, I wanted to give you that twenty bucks I owe you."

Now, he took out his wallet, from his back pocket where it had clearly been all along. His brother was annoyed for falling for such a lie and Mae's expression was somewhere between annoyance and amusement. "I'm always forgettin'." He explained, quite amused and proud of himself as he pulled out a 20. "There ya go."

Sam was annoyed but still grabbed the cash. "Well, we'll leave you two crazy kids alone. We gotta go do something….somewhere."

Slipping his arm around Mae's shoulder, he guided her away. "Okay that was just plain mean. And you could have told me you hadn't actually lost your wallet."

"Oh come on, he wouldn't have gone back and talked to her on his own. And where's the fun in telling you sweetheart?"

Rolling her eyes, she chuckled in spite of herself. "Okay well maybe Sam isn't interested in talking to her like this."

"The hell he isn't. C'mon, he's got a crush on her."

"Right well, you don't have to chase every crush."

"Why not?"

"Because Sam's a relationship guy. Not like…"

They stopped. Dean knew where she was headed, either purposefully or by a Freudian slip. He thought he had been fairly clear about a relationship with her. "What? Like me? Because I think I've been going against type pretty well."

She rolled her eyes. "Dude, you were hitting on chicks the other night."

While she was right, it didn't change his feelings or intentions. Maybe it wouldn't be a traditional relationship and it certainly wasn't headed to marriage or anything like that but it was commitment. They had discussed his wandering eye and he had hoped it wouldn't come up again. He was well aware of the fact that it was not the smartest decision he had ever made. "Aside from that-"

Mae placed a halting hand on his chest. "I'm not picking a fight about that, okay? I just don't think you should be shoving your brother at that girl."

"He's a big boy. If he didn't want to, he wouldn't be there with her. Besides, it's good for him. Maybe if he's not moping around, we'll get some alone time."

Spending time alone with him was more appealing than before. Her confession last night had lifted a weight off her chest and left her feeling far more confident now. He was a better with her than she thought he would be and she was more hopeful than she assumed she could be.

"So what, you're his love broker now?"

"I just want him to be happy. Is that too much to ask?"

His voice softened and it was laced with earnestness. Mae wasn't particularly surprised by his concern. It was actually totally in character for them man but he didn't always express it that way. "Of course not. But can't you understand that it might be tough for him to move on? It can feel like tarnishing a memory. And…the way he blames himself…it's not like you can just turn that off, even when you want to."

"I get that, I do but it's not a bad thing for him to see that at some point, he could move on with his life or even love someone else. And you know that more than anyone, right?"

"He has to make that choice. You can't…force it Dean."

"I'm not forcing. I'm just…he wouldn't leave the damn room if we weren't working this job and just maybe…he could benefit from a nudge in the right direction."

He was right, she didn't like it but he was clearly right about her and probably Sam. "So why are you so cool with all of this? Wouldn't it be easier to not babysit so many clearly broken people?"

"We're all broken. And you and Sam are…family, you know? I don't see any other way than to try to make things better for all of us. So I'm not playing a game here Red" When they finally came to stop at the car, Dean ran his fingers through her long, wavy hair with a down right goofy grin on his face. His hand make to rest on the side of her neck, thumb stroking her earlobe. "Why do you think this is a trick?"

God, he could find the strangest places on her body that made her melt. "I can't give you a good answer. I feel like maybe this is all just a weird set up."

"If it is, I'm not the one doing the setting up. I like spending time with you—and consider what's happened the past few times we've gotten together—I still like being with you. I like being with you despite maybe barely getting to second base. I guess I love you and for whatever reason I _want_ to be with you. I actually feel… just being around you so it's not totally selfless what I'm doing here. Just trust me here."

Mae swallowed, wishing she hadn't brought any of this up. All her wounds appeared to fresh to her all of the sudden. "I do trust you. It's me I don't entirely trust."

"Well, I can trust you for the both of us. We make a good team if nothing else."

She nodded even as he leaned down to kiss her. The man left her doe eyed and made her heart flutter. That part had never changed and damned if she didn't just want more. When she didn't over think it, it was almost perfect being with him. The kiss certainly was.

Mae let herself fall under the spell of the kiss, the slow burn it sent through her body. His hands were firmly reassuring as he grasped her by the waist. She wasn't sure when she would have stopped if Sam hadn't burst out of the auction house, all but running at full speed. "It's back."

"Do… do I want to know what you're talking about?" Mae asked as Dean reluctantly parted from her and Sam ran past them.

He only paused for a moment. "The painting."

Mae and Dean exchanged a highly displeased look before the trio got in the car. Sam and Dean sat up front again and Mae leaning forward, one elbow on the back of the seat and resting her chin on her knuckles. "I don't understand, Dean, we burned the damn thing."

"Yeah, thank you, Captain Obvious. All right, we just need to figure out another way to get rid of it. Any ideas?"

"Okay, all right, well, um….in almost all the lore about haunted paintings, it's always the painting's subject that haunts them."

"Yeah? All right, so, we need to figure out everything there is to know about that creepy-ass family in that creepy-ass painting. What were their names again?"

* * *

><p>They ended up in the town library, trying to find all the information they could on the Merchant family. They had also made the acquaintance of a very chatty and macabre librarian. It was fortunate for them however as it saved them several hours of grunt work.<p>

"You said the Isaiah Merchant family, right?" He asked.

Sam nodded. "Yeah, that's right."

"I dug up every scrap of local history I could find. So, uh, are you three crime buffs?"

It wasn't too far from the truth. And even if it was, Dean wouldn't think twice about lying to the librarian. "Kind of. Why do you ask?

"Well…" the man held up a page from an old newspaper with the headline of 'Father Slaughters Family, Kills Self.'.

"Yes. Yeah, that sounds about right."

Sam asked, "The whole family was killed?"

"It seems this Isaiah—he slits his kids' throats, then his wife, then himself. Now, he was a barber by trade—used a straight razor."

"Why'd he do it?"

Mae wasn't sure that they could find that much information in the article. Or really that it mattered. They could finish off the father's remains and they would un-curse the painting. It would still be an ugly piece but it wouldn't hurt anyone else.

"Well, let's look. Uh, people who knew him described Isaiah as having a stern and harsh temperament and controlled his family with an iron fist.' Wife, two sons, adopted daughter—yeah, yeah—there were whispers that the wife was gonna take the kids and leave, which, of course, you know, in that day and age….so, instead, Old Man Isaiah—well, he gave them all a shave."

He made a shaving gesture with his hand and laughed. Dean chuckled a bit too however Sam was a stoic as ever. Mae was listening offhandedly as she read through some of the other articles on the table.

"Does it say what happened to the bodies?"

"It just says they were all cremated."

That caught Mae's attention and the three hunters exchanged annoyed looks.

"Anything else?" Sam asked the librarian.

"Yeah. Actually, I found a picture of the family. It's right here somewhere." He opened another book. "Right. Here it is."

The picture in the book was the same from the painting, with the exception of Isaiah. He was looking straight ahead in this picture. In the painting they were familiar with, he looked down at the adopted daughter.

"Hey, could we get a copy of this, please?"

"Sure."

* * *

><p>They left the library and went back to the motel to regroup. Sam and Dean sat at the table looking over the material they had gathered so far while Mae sat cross legged on one of the beds.<p>

"I'm telling you, man, I'm sure of it. Painting at the auction house, Dad is lookin' down. Painting here, Dad's lookin' out. The painting has changed, Dean.

"All right, so, you think Daddy Dearest is trapped in the painting? He's handin' out Columbian neckties like he did with his family?"

"Yeah, it seems like it. But if his bones are already dusted, then how are we gonna stop him?"

"There has to be something else keeping him here then. We've gotta dig it up." Mae interjected.

"All right, well, if Isaiah's position changed, maybe some other things in the painting changed as well. It could give us some clues." Dean said.

It was actually a good idea. His brother could still surprise him sometimes. "What, like a DaVinci Code deal?"

Dean paused. "I don't know, I'm still waitin' for the movie on that one. Anyway, we gotta get back in and see that painting. Which is a good thing because you can get some more time to crush on your girlfriend."

Dean got up and lay on the bed Mae was sitting on which merited him a slightly irritated side eyed glance..

"Dude, enough already."

"What?"

"What?" Sam repeated, uncertain as to how his brother could misunderstand his issue with what was bothering him. "Ever since we got here, you've been tryin' to pimp me out to Sarah. Just back off, all right?"

"Well, you like her, don't you? All right, you like her, she likes you, you're both consenting adults…"

"Dean," Mae finally chimed in, "leave this one be."

Looking over her shoulder, she and Dean exchanged rather heated looks.

Sam didn't see it, nor did he know that she and his brother had discussed this very thing earlier. "What's the point, Dean? We'll just leave. We always leave."

"Well, I'm not talkin' about marriage, Sam."

"You know what, I don't get it. What do you care if I hook up?"

"Because then maybe you wouldn't be so cranky all the time." Sam scoffed but Mae smirked a little. Everyone would probably be less tense if any of them were getting laid regularly. Although Dean seemed comfortable doing what he and Mae were doing now which involved very little sex.

Dean continued, sitting up now, "You know, seriously, Sam, this isn't about just hookin' up, okay? I mean, I think this Sarah girl could be good for you. And I don't mean any disrespect, but I'm sure that this is about Jessica, right? Now, I don't know what it's like to lose somebody like that, but…" his gaze passed over to Mae for a moment, "I would think that she would want you to be happy. God forbid, have fun once in a while. Wouldn't she?"

Sam smiled faintly as he considered the young woman he lost, loved. A soft curve cast over Mae's lips too as she thought about Dean's words. She had a long list of reasons to be touched by the moment. First, Dean and Sam were comfortable enough with her around to fight and have a serious discussion. Second, Dean was being quite compassionate in his own way and one that his earlier action might not have indicated. Third, his words spoke to her too.

"Yeah, I know she would." He sighed. "Yeah, you're right. Part of this is about Jessica. But not the main part."

"What's it about?" Sam didn't reply. "Yeah, all right."

Dean leaned back but not before hooking his fingers in the back waistband of her jeans, tugging her back so he could lay down with her. She resisted for a second before giving in. Her first instinct was to curl up next to him but she only lay beside him for now. Yet again he passed a meaningful look over at the lanky redhead. Then he leaned back on the bed. "Well, we still gotta see that painting, which means you still gotta call Sarah, so…"

His brother relented with a sigh and picked up the phone to call Sarah. While Sam was distracted with that task, Mae reached over running her slim fingers between Dean's knuckles when he let one hand on her hip.. "Sorry about before," she whispered.

Dean grinned and winked at her, turning his hand to hold hers. He whispered back, "No problem sweetheart." And stole a kiss. He swore the redhead blushed. Despite herself, the whole thing made her stomach flutter but it was only a moment before he turned away from her and they both sort of settled back to watch the younger Winchester.

In the background, Sam made his call. "Sarah, hey. It's Sam. Hey, hi. Good, good, yeah, um, what about you? Yeah, good, good, really good."

Dean rolled his eyes. "Smooth."

"So, listen, me and my brother were thinking that maybe we'd like to come back in and look at the painting again. I think maybe we are interested in buying it. What? Who'd you sell it to? Sarah, I need an address right now."

* * *

><p>Sam brought them up to speed, although it wasn't difficult to figure out that things had done pear shaped and quickly. They rushed to the house of the woman who bought the painting. Sarah said her name was Evelyn and insisted on going there too. Despite his best efforts, Sam had not dissuaded her.<p>

The trio pulled up to the front of the house and got out of the car, followed closely by Sarah. "Sam, what's happening?"

"I told you, you shouldn't have come." Sam told her. The three of them ran up the front steps.

Dean rapped on the door loudly and called out. "Hello? Anybody home?"

The dark haired woman was worried but she didn't fully grasp the reality of the situation they were facing. "You said Evelyn might be in danger. What kind of danger?"

After knocking and jostling the door, he found it rock solid. "I can't knock this sucker down. I gotta pick it."

Mae pulled out a flashlight, shinning at the knob for Dean while keep lookout for anyone who might notice them. "Well hurry it up, hot stuff."

He only gave her a second of a sneer before he began picking the lock. Sarah walked over to Sam who was frantically yet unsuccessfully trying to open a window without breaking one.

"What are you guys, burglars?" Sarah asked.

"I wish it was that simple." Dean opened the door and winked at Mae. "Look, you really should wait in the car; it's for your own good."

Mae and Dean were in the house, fanning out both on edge. Sam and a determined Sarah Blake followed them in. "The hell I will, Evelyn's a friend."

Sarah called out for the woman. It was probably for the best to have Sarah with them, just in case. This might be a tricky situation without her.

Dean called her name as well. "Evelyn?"

They found her in the living room, seated in her chair and they moved cautiously towards her. She had wasted no time in hanging the painting over her fireplace. The three took note of Isaiah's position; he looked down at his daughter.

"Evelyn? Evelyn? It's Sarah Blake. Are you all right?" They moved closer and before anyone could stop her, Sarah put her hand on Evelyn's shoulder.

"Sarah, don't. Sarah!"

The older woman's head tilted back, her throat savagely sliced. Sarah screamed and had they not seen worse, the trio might have screamed as well. What the trio took more note of was the picture. Isaiah was now looking straight ahead.

"Oh, my God! Oh, my God!" Sarah was losing it, she figure that's what was happening. Sam took her out of the room.

"We so should not bring dates hunting Dean. Do you think that creep bastard is just taunting us now?"

* * *

><p>Somehow, they had managed to calm Sarah down enough to convince her to let them leave. Now they were just hoping she wouldn't roll on them to the cops. So they waited back at the motel. Dean and Mae sat at the table, both going over their research at the laptop. Sam paced. This was not what he hoped for her; he couldn't have even imagined this going down this way.<p>

At long last, a knock came at the door and Sam answered.

"Hey." Sarah came in the room after Sam greeted her, "You all right?"

"No, actually. I just lied to the cops and told them I went to Evelyn's alone and found her like that."

They were all grateful but Sam was the only one who voiced it.

"Don't thank me. I'm about to call 'em right back if you don't tell me what the hell is going on. Who's killing these people?"

They conferred and decided to go with the truth, all without speaking.

"What." Sam corrected.

"What?"

"It's not who, it's what is killing these people." She shook her head. After all who could believe that story, even if it was the truth. Sam continued, "Sarah, you saw that painting move."

"No. No, I was seeing things. It's impossible."

Mae gave her a compatriot smile. "Sugar, you weren't seeing things. Not this time."

"Yeah, welcome to our world."

She hadn't spent enough time with any of them to really understand the dynamics. She only knew that Dean was Sam's brother and Mae was their friend. They most certainly weren't art dealers but she didn't know what or who they really were. However, it all seemed too strange to bother with the truth about who they really were or what they were doing at the moment.

"Sarah, I know this sounds crazy, but we think that that painting is haunted."

Tears formed in her eyes. "You're joking." She hoped they were joking. "You're not joking. God, the guys I go out with."

"Oh believe me, you could do far worse than Sam." Mae offered up, hoping to ease the situation but it didn't do much to make things easier.

Sam hadn't wanted to drag her into this but there was no choice now. "Sarah, think about it—Evelyn, the Telescas. They both had the painting, and there have been others before that. Wherever this thing goes, people die, and we're just tryin' to stop it. And that's the truth."

"Well, then, I guess you better show me. I'm coming with you."

"What? No. Sarah, no, you should just go home. This stuff can get dangerous, and-" He stopped, not wanting to get to deep right then, especially in front of the crowd. Mae and Dean both watched, knowing what was coming next. "and I don't want you to get hurt."

"Look, you guys are probably crazy, but if you're right about this—well, me and my dad sold that painting, we might have got these people killed. I'm not saying I'm not scared, 'cause I am scared as hell, but I'm not gonna run and hide, either." She walked to the door. "So, are we going or what?" She was saddled up and ready to go it seemed as she left the room.

"Sam?" He turned to his brother. "Marry that girl."

* * *

><p>AN- I'm still working on the update but I promise, actual new chapters are coming soon!


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

~X~X~X~Now~X~X~X~

The three hunters had taken Bobby up on his offer to let them stay at his house for a while so Dean could fix up the car. It wasn't completely unwanted or unnecessary offer. They did need to repair the Impala and at least Bobby's was close to something like home. That didn't mean that things weren't strange; everyone was out of sorts but it was to be expected. The energy at Bobby's house was predictable, each of them mourning their losses in their own way.

The first day they were all trying to get their bearings. Sam hadn't been feeling well and slept most of the day and even if he were completely healthy, no one would have said anything. Dean tried to sleep but wasn't able to and decided he would work on the car. It had to be fixed back up and put together. He was unusually unpleasant too but again, no one really said anything about it because none of them blamed him.

Mae wasn't even sure how to reach out to him either. She could sympathize but she'd lost both of her parents before she could even remember. She wanted to think what it would be like to lose Bobby but she wasn't sure that she would feel the same hole in her heart that Dean felt. John's death might have made her feel less guilt had the last few years been different but her overwhelming feelings center around guilt and remorse rather. God did she want to take away Dean's pain though.

But she couldn't and he wouldn't let her. So for her part, Mae did her best to avoid Bobby. She didn't want to be at her uncle's house this long but she didn't feel like she could leave Dean. She didn't want to either. She only wanted to feel less awkward. While things still weren't perfect between her and Dean, he wasn't doing well. Things felt so off kilter with him now. Granted, John's passing hadn't been long enough to even fully process it and she couldn't expect things to be normal again but Dean had totally withdrawn from her. He was nice, polite and respectful; there was simply a lack of connection.

He let her start helping him with the car on the next day, which she chalked up as a success since he' shrugged off any assistance at all from Sam and only wanted minor assistance from Bobby. But he let her help him tear down the car to get to the frame of it. That part was relaxing; it kept their minds off anything else going on right then.

Every time she opened her mouth to say something to him, she found herself lacking anything to say that seemed important. There were no words, not to console either brother or to make things better. No matter how often John and Sam fought, his death wasn't something his youngest son wanted. And Dean… Mae knew this would hit Dean harder than anyone.

It hurt her heart to see him like this, to know that he didn't want her help. She didn't know what exactly she could offer him right then, she didn't know what he needed from her. He said nothing but she knew better. Dean was not particularly skilled at keeping this part of himself a secret from her but he tried. She supposed that he'd had a modicum of success with making something go away by ignoring it and maybe he could process his father's death that way too.

It was on the third day, the third night actually, Mae had finally had enough with letting Dean simply mope around. She could understand depression and anything else he might be feeling at the moment, but not being so closed off from her. Not if he still wanted to be in whatever type of relationship they were having. It wasn't part of the deal and even if all she got was him yelling at her, she assumed it was better than nothing.

Dinner had already been served, partially eaten in complete silence. And then Dean was back to work on the car until the sun had set and he was working by the light cascading from the garage. It was too dark for him to get any real work done. It was too late for him to find something better to do and too early for him to be drunk enough to go to sleep.

Dean sensed her presence before he heard her as her footfalls had been too light. He wasn't sure how long she had been there however. Having her there made him feel things he didn't want to feel right then. And God, she was so damned sweet and accepting. He was pretty sure he could get away with almost anything right now. Only he didn't want to.

The woman didn't say a word, she made him look up and face her which of course he had been trying to avoid. Without speaking to her, his resolve would crumble. When he did end up looking at her, she looked a bit sad. Her smile did little to light up her eyes and he hoped it would. He hoped he could look at her and somehow everything would be better. If he were honest with himself, he wanted to find some sort of absolution in having her there, in being with her, and in having someone like her in his life. But it didn't seem to work like that.

"I'm about finished up here, for tonight."

To busy himself, he wiped his dirty hands off on a rag, doing little to get them clean. Mae stopped the busy movement of his hands, tossing the rag to the side and holding his hands in hers. Dean swallowed a lump that formed in his throat as he looked at her lily-white hands holding his tanner, dirtier ones with a strength and gentleness that shouldn't have surprised him anymore but still did. "Let's go to bed."

He almost didn't hear her but his eyes drifted up to take her in. She was so beautiful with her free flowing red hair and soft, pale eyes. In almost any conceivable situation he would have had her half naked and twisted around him. He wished her could have found more enjoyment in seeing her now, in feeling her touch. But he was more than a little desensitized at the moment. "Mae. Baby, listen, don't take offense but…I can't be with you right now. I don't want…sex."

Her brow creased upwards, those dove colored eyes softened, grew wide and he swore they could swallow him whole. He'd be wrapped up in her, totally and completely. That pretty mouth made the smallest and most sincere of smile. With that compassionate expression, she lifted his hand to her lips and kissed his knuckles, they seemed clean enough. "While you're impossibly handsome and I am sure girls all around the Midwest would throw their panties at you just for the chance to see you dirty and covered in grease—and don't get me wrong, it's a good look for you— this wasn't a sex offer so I'll ask again, do you want to go to bed?"

She tugged at this hands but he resisted her. "I don't-"

"I'm not asking you to kill and sacrifice a goat to Satan. I just want us to go lay down in the same bed, close our eyes wake up a couple hours."

It sounded so simple, so perfect and yeah, he did sleep better with her. "Mae… I…"

This woman was striking and sweet and he was certain he didn't know another person on earth who would make him that offer. Those eyes… her hands, it was all too much to keep resisting. He didn't have to fight her this time and if he was totally honest with himself, he didn't want to. He didn't want to be so uncomfortable with this, not with her. This should have been natural because he knew if positions were reversed, he'd offer her the same thing.

"Okay," With a deep sigh, he closed his eyes and tightened his grip on her hands a little more. If only things were different, he wished. How he wished that for her and Sammy and even himself. "Mae, this is just…" He didn't know what it was, just that he wasn't feeling normal and he was uncomfortable with her for the first time in a long time despite the fact that she was everything he needed her to be right then. He just let he everything go and rested his head against hers.

If she could take away his pain, she would. If she could give him anything more, she would. Her fingers tussled his short hair before stopping to hold his face. There was no question in his mind about how she felt for him. "I know . Let's just get you washed up and go to bed."

She pressed a soft, chaste kiss against his lips. When he opened his eyes, he found that he liked that her eyes were still closed. He had to accept that she wasn't asking for anything beyond a better night's sleep. She was offering exactly what he wanted. While it hadn't been said explicitly either, she wasn't just letting him wallow in self-pity. She was making him be with another person when he didn't want to be because it was easier to push others away.

Yeah, Mae might have thought she was being clever and sneaky but he knew that was her ultimate motivation. To her credit, she didn't push him past his limits. It wasn't a kick in the ass, like his father might have given him were he here. It was a gentle reminder that there was a world out there.

So there she was. The other thing he realized, standing out in that junk yard in front of the remains of his most cherished possession, that maybe she needed this too. They hadn't talk about what had transpired since they first came to Bobby's and there was a lot that wouldn't keep. But for now, it was just the two of them and they didn't need to focus on the other. That was why he let her take his hand as they cleaned up the yard, closed up the garage and shut off the lights. He let her walk him back inside where they both washed their hands and he let himself enjoy it, at least a little.

He knew he didn't deserve to be taken care of by anyone, let alone a woman like Mae. He was drying his hands off on the kitchen towel when he got cold feet again but he couldn't say it to her face so he turned away. "I should… maybe I should just sleep downstairs."

Unfazed, she wrapped her arms around his middle and kissed his neck. It wasn't a romantic gesture entirely. It was more comforting he thought. The hum of eroticism still reverberated in his body when she was pressed against him but not enough for him to do much about it. "I'm not going to stop you but don't you think it would be okay to let yourself have this."

"I—no." He couldn't lie to her. It didn't feel okay to have any of these feelings, particularly for Mae, not right now. He was supposed to be… he didn't know what he was supposed to be feeling but it wasn't what he was feeling. "I really don't deserve any kind of… this."

Her hands pressed against his pectoral as she laid her cheek against his back. "Well you're wrong. This isn't…you do know that if our life wasn't this one, losing your dad would be hard so this it's going to be hard for you, all of us really and to pretend any different would be stupid. You don't have to torture yourself. Again, at least a dozen girls in the Midwest would be willing to do that for you. "

A little moan escaped his lips, followed by a tiny laugh as she held him. He let her hold him just like that until he thought he had imposed on her too long. Freeing himself, he turned to look at her. It made it nearly impossible to stay completely miserable when she stood so close to him with that kind, accepting look on her face. He felt his resolve melt just by looking into her eyes. She cupped the side of his face and smiled sadly at him. "Can I make a suggestion?"

He nodded, letting his eyes drift shut as he relaxed into her touch. "Why don't we just go to bed? I want to hold you. I want you to hold me. Maybe it would get either of us could sleep for more than half an hour."

Placing his hand over the one she had placed on his cheek, he ran his fingers over the back of her hand and down her wrist. He couldn't have loved her more at that moment if he tried. Maybe this was a rare good fortune after spending so much time trying to set things right with her that she was willing to extend him the same courtesy. She didn't even care that all he could give her was, well was absolutely nothing. "You don't think that's selfish?"

"If it starts to feel that way, I could extend it to everyone in the house." She tilted her head with a sleepy smile, "How does that sound?"

It made him chuckled, just a bit. Her hand squeezed his as she pulled him away from the sink, leading him towards the stairs. "Red, I gotta ask, why do you put up with me?"

That stopped her and she turned to look over her shoulder at him. Her smile was a genuine one, the kind that lit up her pale eyes. "It's this crazy thing about me where I love you. A lot."

The words took him out of his thoughts, for a moment at any rate. In fact, she was good at making him think just about her, about the future and all the things he could have with her. He loved her too. Too much for his liking right then. "I really like the way it sounds when you say that."

That smile that slid over her mouth was heartwarming. "I'd even be willing to say a few more times if it would help."

This wasn't remotely fair. First came anger, towards his father for dying because it had screwed things up on so many levels. This was supposed to be their time. But then came the guilt because he wasn't supposed to be mad at him for that. He was mad with himself and to some extent Sam. And grief. He hadn't ever felt grief like this before. He wasn't supposed to find some sense of peace, pleasure or happiness when his father had just died. "Sweetheart, I don't know what to do without... I mean, my whole life… he was always-"

"Shh, babe," She placed her fingers against his lips, "I know that this is tough, I do. But you don't have to figure this all out right now. You don't have to talk about this right now if you don't want to." She said, sensing his discomfort.

"What if I wanna talk?"

She shrugged, "Then talk away. Just whatever comes naturally."

"I just don't know how to do this without knowing he'll be there for me."

Right now wasn't the time to correct him because he was glossing over some pretty obvious failings of his father so she went with what she knew was true. "Well you've got us, right? We're here for you and you can count on that."

"And you? Will you be there for me?"

"Yeah. I…I'm in this now, with you. I'll be here for you. The chance to exercise good sense and self-preservation has long since passed. Now we're family and that's what's family is for, right"

"Yeah, that's what family's for." She tried to leave but he stopped her to lean forward and kiss her forehead. "I love you Mavis."

He followed her up the stairs. They made their way up the stairs quietly but they weren't sneaking like they used to. That seemed sometimes like a better time, despite the secrecy and restrictions they had because of their age. Following her up to her bedroom had been full of fun titillation and the idea that they were getting away with something. It was new and it seemed like something untouchable by the terrible things they saw.

This time, there wasn't any secret anticipation of fooling around with her. No, this time it was a far more banal sensation of comfort that flooded his system. It wasn't something that he would have sought but it seemed foolish that he hadn't. He felt like he was at home for the first time in…ever. And it wasn't a building or a town, it was Mae. He wanted to give her so much more than was possible right now. He wanted to be able to show her how much he loved her and exactly what he felt.

"Mae…"

The sigh that slumped her frame wasn't intentional but she was almost too tired to go for another round of emotion right then. "Can I just…. let's not talk about anything that means anything. I'm so tired and I never sleep better than when I sleep with you. So… in the morning, yeah?"

"Yeah. I don't—" She did look tired and he had sympathy for that. Sleep was a good idea. "I don't exactly have anything to sleep in."

Her eyebrow arched at his uncharacteristic burst of modest but she continued on. "Don't worry about it, I've got it covered."

They probably didn't have to tiptoe from the stairs to her old bedroom but it was force of habit. Mae opened the door to her and they were both flooded with those ancient memories. It was almost the same. Her furniture and posters were still on the walls. The bedspread was still the yellow flowered number she had used all those years ago. The only thing that had changed was that Bobby had used her room to store the overflow of books.

Mae had cleared them out of the way but hadn't taken them out. She could have taken some out Dean realized since he hadn't seen her room in years. It wasn't quite as musty as the rest of the rooms in Bobby's house. She must have washed the linens and she had burned a few candles. Her bag, as well as his were in the corner near the closet.

That was where she headed when they got in the room. She tossed his bag to him before turning away from him. Her back was still turned but he took the opportunity to smirk; she had clearly planned this out and was set to take care of him.

Having caught the bag, he set it on the bed. Her childhood bed. "This a very small bed. I forgot how small it was."

"You never complained before. And you can always sleep on the floor if you really want."

It wasn't appealing. Since she offered to share a bed with him, the prospect of sleeping on the floor another night was instantly unappealing. "I bet we can still fit."

"Good. Well, I've got all your stuff here. If there's anything else you need… I'm pretty sure it's all in the same place."

The room had gone quiet until she unzipped her bag. Dean couldn't seemed to take to take his eyes off her. . When she started to remove her shirt, he wondered if he should have turned away. He was trying to keep his distance and his mind off her. However, watching her move was not helping in the least. The movement of her muscles under the smooth and pale skin of her back enticed him. The tattoo that covered the lower half of her back was hypnotic. That was a magnificent body she had now. It had never been unappealing however now it was simply—he cleared his throat trying to distract himself.

He was actually trying to motivate himself to do something about it. Normally having a half-naked woman in the room with him would have been more than enough. But even for Mae he couldn't muster the right mood…attraction and arousal sure but nothing that he felt comfortable acting on. That disappointment was enough to make him move, unzip his bag and pull out clean boxers and a fresh shirt.

Mae too had changed into a clean shirt and shed her blue jeans. He was barely undressed and there she was in a t-shirt and panties. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah….I just…" He swallowed hard, "I think something's wrong with me."

She wasn't sure what exactly what he thought was wrong with him because at this point it could have been a long list but she didn't think either of them should pick him apart. "Dean, nothing is wrong with you. I promise you that. At least not… I mean, not in new ways." Then looking over the man, shirtless and half out of his jeans, she took a stab at what might be bothering him. "And while I said no serious talk, I just want you to know… do you know how long it took me to get comfortable enough to have sex after my husband died, and yeah, I know it's not the same situation and I'm still a girl and everything but it was a long time. Hell Sam still hasn't gotten laid so I guess what I'm telling you is that grief is a powerful thing."

"I wasn't thinking—" sighing, he tossed his bag off the bed, "how do you know what I'm thinking?"

She shrugged. "Well, I've been thinking about it and keep running up against that wall of 'it's too soon' and I…well, sex isn't the most important thing between us, you know? It's…it's good but we've got this whole emotional thing too.. And you may not feel like you're ready but you're… you have a hard-on."

"Oh."

She could have sworn the man blushed at that which was probably why she didn't push on that aspect. "Yeah, which I'm flattered by the way because you saw my back for all of a minute and you're still turned on."

"Maybe it's the room."

"Maybe." She said with a smile, "Why don't you finish getting ready for bed?"

She let it drop, pulled back the covers on the bed and slid under. She turned her back towards him and left him to his own devices.

"I don't know…I've never done this before Mae and I don't know how to do it right but you're pretty fantastic."

"I love you too."

After changing, he waited a few moments, trying to decide if this was really a good idea. It wasn't the best but it was what he wanted then. Pulling back the covers, he scooted into bed behind her. The bed was tiny and cramped but he would have slept in a bed half that size if he got to have Mae with him. She smelled so good, so intoxicating and he buried his face in her hair. If he had his druthers, he would have done his best to stay right there. It was perfect for him in a strange way. But not for her. No, he was going to fuck up her life. He knew that as sure as he knew anything else. Even knowing that, he knew that he could not give her up right now.

"Why do you smell so damned good?"

"The magic of shampoo I guess."

"Mae… let me just apologize now while I'm feeling … vulnerable."

"Apologize for what, exactly?"

"Everything. Anything. Just…I'm sorry baby."

"Okay, while I don't believe love means never having to say 'I'm sorry', it just doesn't mean that in this case. There isn't a single thing you've done wrong yet."

"Like you say, give me time."

"For now, let's just go to sleep."

And eventually he did but not for several hours after Mae drifted off.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14 **

~X~X~X~Then~X~X~X~

Sarah might have been forthright but she was still a civilian and was a bit hesitant about breaking back into Evelyn's house. "Uh, isn't this a crime scene?"

Dean shrugged it off. "Well, you've already lied to the cops. What's another infraction?

He broke the police seal on the door and the three of them entered the house again. Right away, Sam moved to the painting and took it down from the wall. Leaning it against the chair, they observed it.

It still freaked out Sarah but the other three seemed to study it in an almost scientific manner. "Aren't you worried that it's gonna, you know, kill us?"

"No, it seems to do its thing at night. I think we're all right in daylight."

Mae and Dean stood together comparing the real painting with the photo from the book. "So this is the most twisted game of Highlights 'spot the differences' I've ever played." She muttered to Dean who gave her a conspiratorial smirk.

Then he noticed something and called his brother over. "Sam, check it out." He handed the photo over. "The razor—it's closed in this one, but it's open in that one."

"What are you guys looking for?"

Sam had to admit, he liked her. While she was freaked out, she wasn't freaking out and she was smart. "Well, if the spirit's changing aspects of the painting, maybe it's doing so for a reason. Hey, look at this—the painting _in_ the painting."

It was a minor detail but indeed the painting in the book showed the painting in the picture was of mountains. The painting in front of them showed a building. "Looks like a crypt or a mausoleum or something."

Ingeniously, Dean grabbed the clear glass ashtray from the nearby table and used it as a magnifying glass. The building did look like a crypt and inscribed on the building was the name 'Merchant'.

With that knowledge in hand, they were off to find the mausoleum. Perhaps there would be answers there. But on the way out, Sarah stopped Mae with a gentle hand on her arm. She wasn't quite sure what to make of the statuesque redhead. She too seemed normal on the surface, if not a bit skeptical of the brothers. At least that was as much as she was able to gather when the trio arrived at the auction house.

Since then she had seen her gravitate more towards Dean than Sam and she seemed to have more than a hint of gallows humor to her make up. Sarah wasn't exactly trying to make friends with the woman but she thought perhaps another woman might be able to help her out a little more here. Maybe she had a better perspective on what was going on here.

"So you and Dean?"

Mae nodded and gave her a warm smile. "Um…mostly."

She tucked her hands in her pockets, hoping for more of an explanation. What she was really looking for was an answer to a question she wasn't going to ask. She wanted to know if Mae had at one point in time been like her until she got sucked into some world where paintings came alive and killed people. "And this doesn't freak you out?"

"Well you know, I didn't exactly take this up yesterday. I really wish I could commiserate with you here but I'm kind of used to this."

"Oh."

Just as Dean felt obligated to push Sam out of the nest, so to speak, she felt compelled to try and reassure the woman. "But if you don't mind a little crazy… Sam is a pretty good guy and uh, you'd never be bored."

"Yeah but…can you really…dating?"

"I…I can't actually answer that because I don't really have a lot of dating experience in the way I think you mean. So…who the hell knows?

* * *

><p>At this cemetery, the four of them set to looking for the mausoleum. "That's the third bone yard we've checked. I think this ghost is jerkin' us around."<p>

"Yeah, theis burial plot could be anywhere really." Mae concluded.

"So, this is what you guys do for a living?"

"Not exactly. We don't get paid."

"But it looks great on a resume." Mae quipped

"Well, Mazel Tov."

Dean took note of the mausoleum. "Over there."

Having walked over to the mausoleum, they entered. It was covered in cobwebs, dust and had clearly it had not been disturbed in ages. Several urns were lined evenly along the wall on one side of the crypt and there were glass cases. In one, the one Sarah walked over to held a doll.

"Okay, that right there is the creepiest thing I've ever seen." She said.

Sam must have been trying to make it sound less creepy. "It was sort of a tradition at the time. Whenever a child died, sometimes they'd preserve the kid's favorite toy in a glass case right next to the headstone in a crypt."

Dean and Mae were looking around for clues. "You notice anything strange here?"

"Uh, where do I start?"

"No, that's not what I mean. Look at the urns. "

"Yeah, there are only four." Sam said.

"Yeah, Mom and the three kids. Daddy Dearest isn't here."

"So, where is he?"

* * *

><p>Their next stop was the police station to investigate what exactly might have happened to the father. If the family didn't have him cremated, it could explain why and how the father was still haunting the painting.<p>

"I like her," Mae said as they walked inside the station.

Dean raised an eyebrow, a little surprised that she would weigh in on it, considering her opposition to getting Sam and Sarah to spend more time together. "Yeah, she seems… nice."

"But….? What now that I agree with you, you're changing your mind?"

Dean shook his head. "No, no. She's nice and pretty and just what Sam needs but…maybe you're right. Sam's not a normal guy and maybe he still buys into the idea that he could be, that his life could be a white picket fence life. I think he could buy into it. I like her I just don't want him to make this more than what it is so maybe a girl who he connects with isn't the best idea."

She scoffed. "I don't exactly see him hooking up with some chick to get over his broken heart. Or at all. He's…he's kind of a relationship guy."

"And this isn't relationship work. A girl like that isn't going to just go all in for this lifestyle and you know it. And she deserves better. Sam knows that too so he's not going to let her and…" Dean sighed, running a hand through his hair, "he should have just-"

"I'm gonna try not to be offended by the implications of that statement with regards to me but… I don't know that banging some chick is what he needs. He's not the love 'em and leave 'em type."

"Whatever. Are you ready?"

Mae gave him a wink.

* * *

><p>It didn't take them too long to get the information on Isaiah Merchant's burial and when they came out of the police station, it seemed like Sam and Sarah were deep in conversation. Mae grabbed a hold of Dean's arm to stop him, but Dean being Dean, he smirked and walked up to them. "Am I interrupting something?"<p>

"No."

"Not at all."

"Apparently."

"So, what'd you get?" Sam deflected.

"Pay dirt." Dean read from the papers they had obtained. "Apparently, the surviving relatives of the Merchant family were so ashamed of Isaiah that they didn't want him interred with the rest of the family. So, they handed him over to the county. The county gave him a pauper's funeral—economy-style. Turns out he wasn't cremated, he was buried in a pine box."

"So, there _are_ bones to burn?"

"There are bones to burn."

"Tell me you know where."

* * *

><p>Once again, the four of them found themselves in a cemetery. Fortunately the darkness helped to cover up their shady doings. Sam, Dean, and Mae set to digging up Isaiah's grave while Sarah held the flashlight. With the three of them in the grave, it was cramped quarters however, it made the work brisk. They fell into an easy rhythm until Sam decide to take a break. They were getting close at any rate. He stood next to Sarah now.<p>

"You guys seem to be uncomfortably comfortable with this."

"Yeah, well, this isn't exactly the first grave we've dug. Still think I'm a catch?"

"I think I got somethin'." Dean said.

Sam extended a hand to Mae, helping her out of the grave while Sarah repositioned the flashlight, shining it down for Dean. He used the shovel break open Isaiah's casket, where his bones lay.

Dean was more than a little relieved and he climbed out of the grave with Mae's help. They threw gasoline and rock salt on the bones. "You've been a real pain in the ass, Isaiah." Said prior to striking a match, "Good riddance."

He threw the match in the grave and they all stood together watching the bones burn.

* * *

><p>With the bones taken care of, now all that was left to deal with was the picture. Maybe they could burn it, bury it… anyway to destroy it would be idea. Then Isaiah wouldn't have anything to come back to. Dean pulled up to the mansion and Sam put his hand on his shoulder.<p>

"Keep the motor running." He told Dean.

Sarah was confused. "I thought the painting was harmless now."

"Better safe than sorry. We're gonna bury the sucker." Sam got out of the car, with Sarah hot on his heels.

"I wanna come with you."

"You sure?" Sam asked her.

"Yeah."

Dean called his brother back to the car however. "Hey, hey, hey. we'll stay here, you go make your move." Sam scoffed, "Sam, I'm serious."

Sam and Sarah walked up the front steps of the building. Dean turned on the radio which was playing a love song. It merited a glare from Sam and Dean just shrugged it off. Sam motioned for the music to stop. So Dean reluctantly turned it off and then Sam and Sarah went inside.

"That was smooth, Dean, really smooth."

"You would have gone with it."

She had been resisting the smacking Dean in the stomach the whole time but she put an end to that with the back of her hand. "Like hell."

"Granted I am more charming than Sammy. But if I had to stoop to that level, you'd go for it."

"If you didn't get me before the chance you got to get to that point, you wouldn't ever get me."

"I think I would."

"Of course you do. Because you think you're more charming than that. You're still not getting lucky here so I guess no amount of charm will really help you."

"Oh I'm not? I haven't begun to put the moves on you sweetheart. I mean if I had, if I really wanted to get you into bed, I would have."

It was playful if odd banter and made her strangely happy. "I'm pretty sure you wanna roll around with me more than I do you."

"I do but I want you to want it more. And when you do…believe me, I won't need some little love song."

"That sounds like a challenge Mr. Winchester.

The way he raised and wiggled his eyebrows made her laugh. "You are impossible sometimes, you know that?"

"I'm-" He was cut off by the sudden slamming of the front door.

It broke the moment and they were both out of the car before either had to say anything. Instinct. They ran up the stairs and tried to open the door.

"Stand back." Dean ordered as he tried to bust the door down with no success.

"Dean! Hey! Is that you?" Sam called from the other side.

"Yeah, you all right?" He called through the door. It wasn't the easiest way to have a conversation and moments later, Dean's phone rang. It was Sam. "Tell me you slammed the front door."

"No, it wasn't me. I think it was the little girl."

"The girl? What girl?"

"Yeah, she's out of the painting. I think it might have been her all along."

"Wasn't the dad lookin' down at her? Maybe he was tryin' to warn 'em."

"Hey, hey, hey, let's recap later, all right? Just get us out of here."

"Well, I'm tryin' to pick the lock, but the door won't budge."

"Well, then, break it down."

"Okay, genius, let me grab my battering ram."

"Dean, the damn thing is comin'!"

"Well, you're gonna have to hold it off until we figure somethin' out. Get some salt or iron."

Outside the house, Mae and Dean tried to find a way back into the house but the doors and windows were all sealed up tightly. Sam hadn't hung up the phone and they could hear as they tore the house apart looking for something to repel the ghost.

"Uh, Dean, give me a sec, don't go anywhere."

"Sammy, you okay?" Dean asked as the ruckus died down.

"Yeah, for now."

"How we gonna waste her?"

"I don't know. She was already cremated. There's nothin' left to burn."

"Well, then, how's she still around?"

"There must be somethin' else.

"Sam, wait. We used to handle antique dolls at the auction."

"Well, that's fascinating, Sarah, but important right now?"

"Well, back then, they used to make the dolls in the kid's image, I mean, everything, like, they would use the kid's real hair."

"Dean? Sarah says the doll might have the girl's hair. Human remains—same as bones."

In unison, they spoke. "The mausoleum." Dean hung up and grabbed Mae by the hand. They ran down the stairs to the car.

"What exactly are we doing?" Mae questioned but leapt into the car with Dean.

"It's the girl, not the dad. We're going back for the doll."

Without heed to anything but stopping the girl's ghost, the pair sped to the cemetery. When they arrived, Dean only drove faster through the gates and across the cemetery lawn.

They dashed out of the car once it had come to a screeching halt and into the mausoleum. There was the glass case, containing the doll and with any luck, the end to their haunted painting problem. Dean attempted to break the care, first using the butt of the gun. However, it wouldn't break by sheer force.

Then of course he realized it was a gun. "Come on, Dean! Cover your eyes, Red." He finally used the gun to shoot out the glass and break open the case.

Mae grabbed the doll out as Dean retrieved his lighter from his pocket. She held the doll as Dean attempted to light the hair. Once again, things were not going his way as the lighter wouldn't catch easily.

"Come on, come on!"

Once he finally got the lighter to make a flame, the doll's hair caught light and burned quickly. When it was safe enough to drop without putting out the flame, Mae let the doll fall to the ground. With a feeling of hopeful relief, they watched the doll burn out.

Neither of them said anything, worried they might jinx things. Dean grabbed his cell phone out of his pocket to call his brother.

"Sam, you good?"

"Not bad."

* * *

><p>The next day found Sarah working back at the auction house. She was determined to make sure that painting was of no harm any longer. Two workers were packing it into a crate when Sam, Dean and Mae came in. They had brought some of the additional information they had found once they focused on the girl instead of the father.<p>

"This was archived in the county records. The Merchants adopted daughter, Melanie. Know why she was up for adoption? 'Cause her real family was murdered in their beds." Dean said.

"She killed them?"

Dean nodded. "Yeah, who'd suspect her, a sweet little girl? So, then she kills Isaiah and his family, the old man takes the blame—spirit's been tryin' to warn people ever since."

One of the workers interrupted them. "Where does this one go?:

"Take it out back and burn it." Sarah said and naturally she received a confused look. "I'm serious, guys. Thanks." They didn't question any further and took the box away, presumably to burn. "So, why'd the girl do it?" Sarah asked.

"Killin' others, killin' herself—some people are just born tortured. So, when they die, their spirits are just as dark."

Dean wasn't sure if Sam was right or not. "Maybe. I don't really care. It's over, we move on."

Sarah laughed, awkwardly. There were so many things that were strange about this situation, the least of which being the fact that this guy she liked would be leaving. Just like that. "I guess this means you're leaving."

Sam shrugged and then passed a glance to Mae and Dean. Frankly, Mae would have been fine with spending a few more days in New York. There were more than a few things she could think of doing. And she knew Dean would have stayed if Sam wanted. Yet none of them said anything.

"We'll go wait in the car. See ya, Sarah." Sarah nodded and gave him a small smile. It wasn't what he was expecting exactly. He threw his arm over Mae's shoulders. "I'm the one who burned the doll, destroyed the spirit, but don't thank me or anything." Still, he left, with Mae in tow.

"You know I helped too."

"I guess we're just not as pretty as Sammy."

"No I'm pretty sure I am. If she were into chicks, she'd be all over this."

Dean laughed, squeezing her a little tighter. "I don't even know where to start with that one."

"Yeah …all in all, I think we did pretty well."

"Coulda been better but we got the job done."

"Next time, we should just start at the creepy kid. It's always the creepy kid."

They got back to the car and Dean looked at her over the roof. "And you and me?"

"Well, we might not get points for style but I think we stuck the landing."

"So, you don't need me to drop you off somewhere."

Her smile was mischievous. "Not unless you want me to come hunt you down and kick your ass."

Sam had said his goodbyes and was headed to the car as well. They were ready to leave. But Sam was drawn back to the auction house. He needed to give Sarah a proper goodbye. When she opened the door, he kissed her with all he was worthier. Outside, Dean lingered a moment when he realized Sam wasn't joining them. Mae however simply got into the passenger side.

"That's my boy." Dean got in the car with Mae now. She placed her hand on his cheek to turn his head towards her. He was about to question her before her lips landed on his.

"What was that for?"

"I didn't really want to sit here watching your brother kiss Sarah."

"Ah. I like your plan even more."


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Disclaimer: Still don't own the boys! But Mae is mine.

I'm picking up a different place than the previous chapters because this one was coming with a little more ease than what I was originally going to go with but this one is a little more fun.

* * *

><p>Right after a hunt was always a strange sort of time. Depending on how it went, they might be amped up, they might be coming down, they might feel accomplished or they might be wrecked. Or any combination of those feelings. They usually had to get the hell out of whatever town they were in, leaving as few leads back to them as possible.<p>

It seemed strange to leave now because there was clearly a spark between Sam and Sarah. To what extent that would go was a big unknown but it didn't have to be anything more than it was. But Sam wasn't interested in seeing what exactly that meant. He was more eager to go than Mae or Dean.

Accordingly, they put a couple hundred miles between them and upstate New York. It wasn't a particularly strange drive this time. They weren't particularly talkative and that was okay. Dean would have actually called it nice, having his brother and his girl with him on the road, doing the job they were all trained to do. For him, this was better than normal, better than an apple pie life.

It wasn't perfect but it was damn close, he though, casting a glance at the woman in the seat next to him. He thought he would be more bothered by having a woman in his personal space but he was surprised by just how comfortable he was having her there. She seemed surprisingly comfortable too, sitting in the passenger seat, one boot off so that she could sit with a knee pulled up against her chest, arms wrapped around it while she read.

She wasn't completely focused on her book he noted as he could see her mouth the lyrics to the occasional song that came on the stereo. It was an unexpected turn on, although at that point, there wasn't much that she did that wasn't at that point.

Briefly, he wondered where the hell any of this was going and while he could imagine any number of things and fantasize about a great deal of directions he wanted it to go. The most disturbing thing, in Dean's mind, was that he was more or less okay with things the way they were. Yeah, he would have added sex but he was sure Mae would have too. Okay, he really wanted that and he assumed that if he could get her alone and they didn't over indulge in the lead up to that, he could achieve that.

In a rarity, he was actually as uneasy about the idea of sex with her as he was by all of the emotional and relationship things he'd had to deal with in being with her again. It left him horribly off kilter and he hoped that he'd be able to gain some ground with her in bed.

His eyes once again shifted back to her as a dopey grin over took his face.

"What?" She asked him.

"What what?"

"You keep looking at me."

"Nothing. I'm just…looking at you."

Her eyebrow eased up but she didn't say whatever snarky comment was on the tip of her tongue. He did notice the way her mouth turned up in a half smile. It was a good look on her, he thought. Maybe it was nervousness, he thought—he hoped, that made her turn a light shade of pink and push her hair out of her face impatiently.

~X~X~X~

They decided to stop in a little, nearly no name town in Pennsylvania for the night. It was getting late and while Dean didn't particularly mind driving through the night, taking an evening to decompress might be just what they needed.

He wasn't certain about what Sam was feeling right then, if he was okay with what had happened or if he was feeling some unnecessary guilt about possibly moving forward with his life. Or if his momentary confidence in that area would bolder his confidence. Of course, he only wanted to worry about that if things went the wrong way with Mae.

Only because Sam had fallen asleep in the back did Mae curl up beside him. To his great pleasure, she'd put her book away when it became too dim to read and she slid across the seat, next to him and she currently rested her head on his shoulder. That alone was enough to encourage him to keep driving. Warm, pretty, and good smelling. It was also enough to convince him that a motel was in order.

The change in speeds was enough to rouse her. The little moan that escaped her was stupidly charming. "Where—where are we?"

"Po-dunk Pennsylvania."

'I guess I fell asleep on you there."

"It's okay. We'll get a room."

She eased away from him, straighten her clothes and body a bit. "Uh, two rooms actually."

"Two?"

"Well yeah." Mae knew he must have been abundantly confused and she didn't blame him bust she still refused to look at him while she put her boots back on.

"Is that good or…no, two rooms is good."

She cleared her throat. "One for you and Sam, one for me."

"That's less fun."

"I just…I sort of need my own space, okay?"

Getting two rooms was a good idea, he just didn't think he'd be sharing with his brother. He frowned, knowing it was a bit childish to pout about it or ask her why she didn't want to stay with him, for just one night. Before he let it get the better of him, Dean got out of the car and went in to the office to pay for both rooms before she could stop him or ruin his illusions any further.

He could be cagey at times but lately, he had been a little more open. The request, in her opinion, wasn't that odd or off base. It shouldn't have bothered him but obviously, she had assumed wrong on that one. She jogged ahead to meet up with him.

With a hand to his bicep, she stopped him. "Hey, did I say something wrong?"

"I just want to get settled for the evening."

"You know this isn't some sort of…statement or protest or me fucking with you or something, right?"

"I—I'll have to take your word on that."

"I'm serious. I'm in no way pushing you away but I don't think I'm ready to bunk with you and your brother and…well, there are—I just like and am used to being by myself so I need just a little time to get used to something else."

"Maybe I like sleeping with you more than my brother."

"That…sounds super weird but flattering. I think."

"I just…after the past few days…"

"Nothing's change. Well actually, it but not in a bad way."

"Then let me get the rooms and we can get some sleep before we hit the road again. Unless we find another job around here."

"You know I can pay my own way."

"Technically, Douglas Colvin's payin' for the room. It's the least he could do."

She rolled her eyes but couldn't keep the smirk off her face. Part instinct and part desire to reassure him led her to stand on tiptoe so she could press a kiss to his cheek. For whatever reason, the gesture made his stomach quiver in a way that he was unaccustomed to with any other woman and he was certain that she made him blush a bit.

"You know, uh, not to press the issue but… do you not want to share a room with me? Because we've done it before just…seems like every time, one or both of us have been incapacitated in some way. So is it me or…?"

"It's not you. I promise. I just…I need to get some sleep. And I get the feeling that you won't let me do that easily." She started off looking at him but her eyes dropped from his in what might have been embarrassment.

"Is it cuz I snore?"

"It isn't anything. There isn't even an it this time. Just…just let this go, please?"

"We will sleep together eventually, won't we?"

"Yeah. You know I'm not going to disappear if I'm outta your sight Dean."

"Okay, just get your stuff out of the car." And because he wanted to have the upper hand at least once, he swatted her ass as he made his way into the office. He didn't look back to see if she was giving him dagger eyes since there was almost more satisfaction in doing it if she were.

* * *

><p>Mae hadn't been entirely honest about getting sleep; that would have been a nice bonus but typically, she could sleep just about anywhere. No, she had some work to do and she didn't really want Sam or Dean involved in it. It wasn't that she didn't trust the guys. In fact, they took up two fingers on the number of people she trusted that she could count on one hand.<p>

They would simply have more questions than she wanted to answer at this point. Eventually, once she had enough information. Once she put things together enough to understand what the hell she was looking at, she could talk to them about it. Until then, she could work on putting the pieces together. It would make it easier for all of them if she could figure out what John figured out.

So when Dean knocked on her door seeing if she'd changed her mind and wanted to get something to eat instead of just falling back to sleep, Mae declined but appreciated his offer to bring her back something.

It didn't take him long to come back with something that wasn't completely inedible but like he said, it was night in a small town and that meant slim pickings. Dean linger in the door way of her room after he handed her the brown paper bag of food.

"Thanks for the food. You really didn't have to."

"I wanted to. Besides…I…" He sighed, not entirely sure what he wanted to say to her exactly but knew he had to get something off is chest nonetheless. His eyes slid back and forth over her face. "Listen, Mae, sweetie. I know this isn't, this isn't ever going to be a real relationship. But we can have whatever it is that people like us are able to have so, I just want you to know…I don't want you to feel like you owe me anything or like I'm trying to force something you don't want with me. I'm happy with whatever you're willing to give me."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Dean…"

"I don't want you to…I just needed you to know that. So…so, have a good night Mae."

He leaned in to kiss her softly, chastely and the whole thing left her speechless and almost unresponsive to his action. This time he left her standing there in the door to her room, perplexed and motionless until she heard the door of his room close.

~X~X~X~

Dean wasn't particularly tired but Sam had fallen asleep and he wasn't in the position to burn off his excess energy at a bar or with some random, pretty girl. The television was on but he couldn't rightly say he was watching it. They still needed to lie low for a few days, find another job or maybe a lead on where their dad was. Take a few hours to make some extra cash. But Dean wasn't thinking about that. He thought about that woman next door.

He knew what he told her, he'd take what he could get, and for the most part he meant it. He just thought that perhaps he had convinced her to give a little more. Of course, he wasn't sure what he could give her outside of doing this together again. All of them. Family. But maybe, perhaps why he was reluctant to push it, she didn't want to be a part of that family.

That was the biggest risk in all of this. Sure, he liked being with her, spending time together, and he was still as attracted to her as he'd ever been but he'd lost her once already. She'd pushed him away and he had gotten used to that too. Having her back in his life was strange to him. Yet on some level, it seemed like nothing had ever changed. It couldn't be just one sided either. When she didn't throw up her defenses, she fell into an easiness with him and didn't fight what she was feeling.

But they couldn't yell at each other about it or fight or do more than circle each other. Ideally, he wouldn't have to deal with any of this at this point but he supposed it came along with having to build a bridge with her and fix things. She was much more work than a one night stand but that wasn't totally without reward.

As if answering a silent prayer for a decent distraction, his phone buzzed on the night stand next to him. He picked up his phone only to see it was a message from Mae. That wasn't exactly what he was hoping for since she was part of the problem.

_~Hey. Come over. Let's do something.~_

He had a long list of things they could do and the girl had left it open. Still, out of a strange sense of reprisal, he didn't jump at her beck and call. He knew that he'd go to her without question but he wanted to string her along as long as he could stand it.

_~Like what?~_

_~Just come over.~_

He smirked a little. He hoped he wasn't reading too much in to those three words but he wanted to think that there was a little more desperation and desire in there. Of course she could have just been bored. It was just as likely that she was bored.

He couldn't quite determine what he should write back. Instead, he decided to take a few minutes to brush his teeth and freshen up. He stopped short of shaving since it was nearing midnight and it seemed too desperate if not out of character.

"Hey, what's up, Red?" He asked when he finally arrived at the door to her room.

She yanked him by the lapels of his jacket, half pulling him into the room and half pulling herself up against his body. Before he could say anything more, her mouth covered his. Hot and fast and needy. After the initial surprise of being met by her unexpected aggression, he took hold of her by the waist.

He wasn't going to let her get away quite yet but he couldn't quite silence the voice in the back of his mind that warned him that something could possibly off. That voice was one hell of a buzzkill but he couldn't deny that he wanted this to be real.

Reluctantly, he took her chin in his hand after they parted. He indulged himself for a moment by running his thumb over her lips gently.

"Are you… this isn't some sort of hex or alcohol induced…something?"

Her fingers teased at the edge of his shirt collar. "Are you trying to tell me you don't want to sleep with me tonight?"

Dean knew she was probably by habit a pretty forward woman, which he appreciated, but he wasn't entirely used to it with her at this point. "No, not…no. But…God, I'm over thinking this…Mae, you're not a chick I picked up in a bar. It's not like…I mean, in that case there's more of an understanding that we're gonna do somethin' fun and dirty. And with you, I guess I don't know what I'm supposed to do."

"I'm happy with that arrangement. If it helps, pretend you picked me up in a bar and I agreed to come back to some sleazy motel room with you."

He chuckled, slipping his thumbs through the back belt loops of her jeans, making sure to keep her close. "In that case…" Dean leaned in to kiss her again.

A little more deliberate this time, taking the time to make the kiss long and deep, he tilted her head up towards her. In fact, both of them were rather out of breath by the time they parted this time. He reached up, cupping her cheek and running his thumb over her reddened lips. "You're sober, right?"

"Dude! Seriously?"

"I know what I want this to be and it's not that. At least not right now."

"So you do want drunken sex?" Her brow arched softly.

"I'm not opposed to it should it happen but uh, I…this just needs to be…right, at least once."

Mae's smile was soft. "Man, you are twisted up about this, aren't you?"

"No, I mean… you matter to me. It matters to me that this is…well, I guess more than sex. So if this is because you think I'm upset because we got separate rooms or because I expect it at this point or because we've been drinking…" he laughed a little self-consciously, "I…don't wanna screw this up, Mae. I don't have any illusions—"

"Shut up. Just shut up Dean. I want you. Sober. Sane. Not feeling obligated. Or anything else."

He close his eyes when her lips pressed softly against his. Dean's hand threaded through her hair to cradle the back of her head with one hand as his other traveled up her back. Kissing him had always been one of her favorite activities and if anything, it was better now

A tension wove its way through the entire experience. Dean wanted to take it slow. It was hardly a first time for them but he couldn't really fall back on his former knowledge of her or what she liked. At the same time, he wanted to bury himself inside her. He wanted her hard and fast and most importantly, right then. He would even risk the admission that he needed to be with her. It was admittedly a bit overwhelming to have her here, in the flesh, clear minded, and enthusiastic.

Everything up until now seemed teasing but didn't entirely prepare him for having her right her, right now and to his surprise, this mattered to him. It mattered in a way that sex normally didn't matter. It wasn't just sex, not with Mae.

"Fuck," he muttered against her mouth.

She pulled away, just a bit, to look at him skeptically. "Well, yeah, that's the point."

He sighed as he tried to smother the feeling. "No, I—this is… I'm out of my depth."

"Well…I know your name, I'm willing to talk to you, I haven't been drinking, and I'll see you in the morning. And I probably won't steal your cash. Probably. So I'm a bit out of my depth too."

He scoffed slightly. "I haven't really ever slept with the same woman more than once. I mean, maybe yeah more than one time but I've…I'm not exactly in the habit of picking things up later, you know? So…God, I can't believe this but…I guess I'm…"

"Nervous?"

"Not—no, not nervous really."

"You worried I won't respect you in the morning?"

Damn, she was beautiful when she grinned like that. "I—this just matters to me, that's all."

"Didn't it matter the last time we started up?"

"That's not what I mean."

"I'm pretty sure normal people use that feeling when they have sex with someone. I don't know, maybe we could do that."

"You're a real smart ass, you know that?"

"I never thought I'd have to say this to you but stop thinking so much about your feelings and start thinking about my body."

He lifted her up, pleased that she responded by wrapping her legs around his hips. Once again her mouth met his, this time she took his bottom lip lightly between her teeth. This heat that he saw in her dove grey eyes was something he wasn't used to from her. It wasn't unwelcomed but again, unexpected. There were a lot of ways that she was still the girl he fell in love with but he was reminded that she was indeed older and more experienced than that girl.

There was something a little more erotic and seductive about her now. When she sank her teeth into his flesh very gently, it sent a jolt of passion down his spine. He had her balanced with firm hands on her waist so she didn't need to hold on to him. Instead, she reached inside his jacket to push it off his shoulders.

Dean was abundantly disappointed by lack of skin contact with her in that moment. Things moved more towards quick and fervent as they stripped each other's shirts off and he moved towards the bed.

Depositing her on the bed, he took a moment to look at the redheaded woman, clad in jeans and a lacy bra. His breath caught in his throat. It was impossible not to feel a certain sense of nostalgia mixed with his desire. Particularly when she started to laugh a little.

"You do realize that we showered together just the other day. You've seen me in my underwear and naked before."

"I know. That doesn't change the fact that you're beautiful."

"Get over here, handsome."

She said, reaching forward to tug at the waistband of his jeans. The unwelcome butterflies in his stomach kicked up again when her fingers fluttered over his abs as she moved to unbutton his pants.

He had to push the thought of her out of his head, not the thought so much as whatever came next or what had happened before. He had to focus just on this moment, the uniquely beautiful woman, her passion, her need, his longing, his desire, and that brought him to a good point to work from with more success.

In this moment, that was all he needed. It mattered that he'd wanted her for so long and that he wanted whatever they had to be more good than bad. This was good.

* * *

><p>AN-Yep…a brand new chapter! Let me know what you think. Feedback is what I live for! So I do have an extended version of this that is way more graphic so if you'd like to read that, just let me know!


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

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><p>It was amazing how simple everything was when they both stopped overthinking things and just went with instinct. Mae and Dean found that perfect balance between frantic desire and lovemaking. She hadn't set out to romanticize this but she couldn't keep those feelings out of the experience entirely.<p>

It wasn't romance in the traditional sense but for them, they were both more emotionally exposed with each other than they had been with any other people on earth. They lay together in the king sized bed in a hazy, placid, post coital bliss, not talking but exchanging soft strokes and pecks across the expanses of exposed skin.

"Wow," she said after an inhale, "that was better than I expected."

His hand stroking her arm slowed but didn't still entirely. "You were expecting something bad from me?"

She scoffed, shifting up to look at Dean. "No, not really. I was actually expecting some sort of wildly physical satisfying fling. Or possibly that I t would be like before. Not spell sex before but before before. When we were younger before."

"I thought…well I thought it was pretty good. I mean, didn't you like it?"

"Obviously, I liked it, never having had sex before. Either of us. But it was good for, for maybe the opposite reasons this was good. Or did you mean now?"

His brow creased but he rolled to face her too. He didn't quite meet her eyes but he ran a pair of fingers along the smooth surface of her bicep. "I meant now but now I'm kind of worried about before."

Mae scanned his face and found an odd balance there, something between contentment and vulnerability. It wasn't a completely unappealing look either. "Well back then we…we loved each other and it was…you know, when you're young…and maybe it's just me but I really felt like losing my virginity to you, you being my first was a big thing. I don't know if it was as good as I recall but it was perfect because of how I felt about you."

She took a breath. "And…this time…there was… well we're older, more experienced. And we're both probably pretty at…well having sex that doesn't mean anything."

It was a comparision that normally he wouldn't have minded but coming from her, it didn't ring true for him. While he might not have said it aloud, being with Mae, sex or not, meant a whole hell of a lot to him. That made having sex with her mean more than just a night of fun."You think this didn't mean anything?"

"Oh boy…Listen, that's not what I'm saying but… I don't know, it just wasn't… it wasn't what I imagined it would be like. I…it's not like I hadn't thought about it before tonight. And this just wasn't what I expect. It was good but it wasn't what I pictured. But, Dean, let's not dissect this, please?"

Admittedly, it was different than the way he pictured things too. For one, he hadn't really pictured it happening for some time. He didn't expect her passion, skill, or intensity. He expected the sweet thing they'd once had. Not that this was bad and if he looked her in the eyes, he could see the sweetness behind the heat. The rest of it was an added bonus. He had to consider this a win.

"So," he said, reaching across the gap between them with his foot to run his toes along her foot, "was it that 'I'll take what you can give me' thing that finally got you?"

She chuckled, "No. I sort of decided this was what I wanted before that. I hate to say it, Slick but I don't think your normal bag of tricks works on me."

"Oh it so totally does. I just haven't used it on you." Gently, he ran his fingers down along the swell of her breast, feeling more than a little possessive of the redhead.

"Well, I prefer the real you over whoever you pretend to be when you're being that guy."

He rolled his eyes a little and was rather mystified when soft fingers moved to outline his lips. "I'm serious Dean. For all our very obvious and sometimes awful problems, I like the you that you don't let people know about. Maybe because so few people know that part of you."

"I suppose. So is this the real you?

There was a silence before a long breath. "As real as I have been in some time although sometimes I don't know what real is, you know?"

He absolutely agreed but threaded his fingers through her hair and pulled her in for a firm kiss.

* * *

><p>Dean knew he shouldn't have been surprised that Mae was still in bed with him, if only because it was her room and her bed. But she was still there and she hadn't kicked him out after that night so it was more than he'd expected. Normally, he would have loved hooking up with a chick who was looking for nothing more than a night of fun, dirty, sex and have that be the end of it.<p>

But with Mae, he wasn't looking forward to that. He actually took some sense of satisfaction in knowing her, in waking up with her, knowing that they would be able to spend more time together. He wondered if he would feel this way if she were any other woman. He'd had a flicker of it with Cassie but it wasn't impossible to step away from her, to go on with his life and work without her. She might have known but she wouldn't ever understand.

Mae understood. She understood and she lived it. But somehow that didn't matter either. This one woman perplexed him in ways he couldn't even anticipate. All that made sense when it came to her was having her with him, simply being near her seemed to give him some sort of supernatural boost.

He ran his fingers along the delicate silver chain that lay sloppily along her chest to the cluster of charms that sat in the envious position between her breasts. At least now he felt less lecherous touching her like this. The even rise and fall of her breath was rather hypnotic until it jumped, almost imperceptibly before she gathered herself and in an instant her grey eyes popped open and her fist was poised to fly at him. But her hand was still as her slightly sleepy and wild eyes focused on his face.

Her hand fell back against the pillows as an expression of resignation smoothed her face. "Jesus Dean, you startled the hell out of me."

He chuckled but reached up to gently brush some hair out of her face. "Sorry about that sweetie."

She took a breath and stretched her lean body, much to his delight. He leaned over her to kiss her softly, a little bit lazily, with no pressure or indication that it would lead anywhere further. What she enjoyed most about the whole thing was his hand, easing gently over her stomach, spreading a wonderful warmth through her body.

Her eyes were a little starry and that sloppy sort of dreamy smile was one he always wanted her to give when they were together. "Man, I forgot just how much I like making out with you."

"That's it?"

"That's pretty high on my list. So…I'm a little surprised you stayed."

"Were you hoping I'd leave?"

She shook her head. "I just thought you'd be more comfortable in your room."

"This is much better than staying with Sam."

"Well, he is kinda flat chested and I know that's not your thing." She teased.

Dean didn't exactly smile in kind. "I… he's kind of ticked off at me right now."

"For spending the night with me?"

"No, I'm pretty sure he's grateful for time to himself actually. It's for letting Dad go. He doesn't understand."

She cupped his cheek sweetly. "Not that you asked me but I think he does."

"What does that mean?"

"I mean that you're both hunters, at least you were raised that way but he's… he's kind of more situational and you're in it 'till you die . He's got one goal, to take down this monster and if he has to die to do it, he will."

"So would I. So would you, right? I mean you don't do this if you're not willing to lose it all."

She shook her head. "I'm not saying this job isn't gonna take me under, it is but I try not to let it right now. Even I can tell it's not a risk to him anymore. If he kills it or it kills him, it's all the same for him."

"No, he's not…"

"I don't wanna start a fight babe."

"But you think….you think that's true? About Sam?"

"Maybe I'm wrong but…there's just this…aura around him. So it's probably good you're with him on this, keeping him from being totally stupid. He's taken jobs on the side because… because it's what he was supposed to do when he's with you. But that's not what he's cared about."

"You make him sound crazy."

"We're all crazy." She said with a laugh, "Sane people don't do this shit. But Sam had to take this thing down because it took the one thing from him that made him feel normal. And as rational as he can be, he can't get around this and he can't explain it to you."

Somewhere deep down, he knew she was right. And he knew it was one thing in the long list of things he didn't want to worry about but had to when it came to Sam. "I lost my mom too."

"22 years ago. Sam just lost Jess and… for better or worse, this job doesn't let you forget and it doesn't let you move on. Look at your dad. No offence but… he didn't stop even though he still had you and Sam. Most parents…well, all I'm saying is some things change you to your core. And sometimes you don't get over it."

"So the thing that killed your husband, you'd die for that?"

"I—no. but…that's a more complex issue." She laughed more bitterly this time. "But this isn't a contest about who remembers more, who's more dedicated or who wants this thing dead more. I know you wanna kill this thing too, I know you do but it's a long game you're playing. You're not willing to take this thing out unless you know for sure that not just you, but your whole family walks away."

"Yeah, I guess." Dean frowned, casing his eyes down to the white sheets.

Mae leaned up to kiss his chin. "And I would guess that Sam is a little worried that your dad will take it on before he gets there. Then he won't get his revenge either."

"But we won't get it if we're all dead."

"You don't need to convince me. I get your choice and I get why Sam would be upset by it."

"Well… you are right. You know, he… he wants to go back to school once this is done."

There was a sadness that crossed his face that she only rarely saw and one that she genuinely didn't expect to see there. "You can't blame him for that."

"Oh come on, you know that people like us can't live out there like we're normal."

"But that doesn't mean that he doesn't want to try."

"But…" Every way he tried to say it now made him feel foolish, weak. He'd already said it once and no one understood it.

"But what?" She asked softly and touched the side of his face gently.

"I like hunting with him. I like hunting with you. All of us together. I like being a real family."

"Huntin' isn't what makes us family. You don't have to be together to be family."

"I know that but… I guess I don't like being alone." She had his secrets just spilling out of him in a way that he hated but still felt natural somehow.

"Well…" she cleared her throat, feeling nearly as exposed as Dean was, "I uh, I don't have any plans to go anywhere. And I used to think I liked being alone."

He wondered if she knew what that wide eyed expression of hers did to him, with those impossibly honest and open grey eyes. It sent that comfortable discomfort through his frame and made it almost a little too difficult to speak. "And now?"

A small, sweet curve to her lips. "I hate to have to admit it but I like hunting with you. And Sam. It's easier, safer less lonely. I like you I suppose."

"I like you too." He sat up and coaxed her to join him, head resting against his shoulder. "So… let's say we kill this monster and Sam does go back to school or wherever… would you stay?"

"Dean…"

She said it in that way, that slow and thoughtful way that made him brace for whatever she needed to think so deeply about. It was one of those yes or no questions and he could just hear the maybe. It was the way only she could say something so simple and leave him feeling all alone. "Jesus Mae. You might as well kick me in the-"

He didn't loosen his hold around her shoulder but he felt her shift and then her fingers pressed against his lips. "Shut up. You could give me the benefit of the doubt…at least once. I mean, maybe I deserve that reaction but just let me finish okay?" She waited a beat to make sure he didn't have any more to say or that he would at least keep it to himself.

"I don't know what this is or where it's going and I have my own life, my own work. I'll be here for you, you don't have to doubt that but I don't want to be together because you don't want to be alone."

"I didn't tell you that just so you could throw it back at me."

"I'm not. I…we can be together, we can hunt together as long as I can take care of what I need to and that we're not here out of a sense of obligation."

"If it's too much to really take up with me—"

"Listen, if what you're saying is that your idea of you and me together is all what you want but nothing I need, then I not only can't do this with you, I don't want to. But if we can do this so I get something and you get something…then, yeah."

"You don't wanna do any of those mysterious things you have to do with me?"

"I wasn't saying we couldn't do them together but I get that maybe you've got other things you need to do and maybe that doesn't always synch up at the same time. But we could always come back to this. Not spending every minute together doesn't mean we're not together."

"Yeah, I can work with that."

She smiled, running her fingers over his lips carefully. His eyes twinkled playfully. "Good."

"You're not just company. If I just wanted a warm body or a pretty face, I would pick a chick I didn't have to work so hard to get."

He made her laugh as he pressed a kiss to the top of her head. It also made her realize exactly how in love with him she was. "Dude, all you did to get me last night was knock on the damn door."

"I worked really hard to get you to be on the other side of that door Mavis. And it took a long damn time, for me at any rate."

"Oh poor baby. But I'd like to think it was a better lay than some bar skank. At least I think you were."

"Sure the first time but maybe it's just a flook. We should see how it is after a few dozen times."

"A few dozen?" He liked the bright wonder in her voice, even more when she moved to straddle him. "You'd better not write and checks you can't cover here, pal."

His eyes roamed freely over her athletic body, followed in short order by his hands."Oh I can make good on that promise, sexy."

His mouth came down fervently against her neck, causing her to laugh, finally a deep and rich laugh.

* * *

><p>It wasn't too early by the time they were headed out towards their next job, their next city. It was too late in Sam's opinion and far too early for either Mae or Dean. For his part, Dean would have been abundantly happy to spend a day or two, holed up with his girl and letting his brother dig up their next job.<p>

He came out to find his brother and Mae kissing—and kissing was cleaning it up—against the impala He wasn't exactly sure where the girl's hands were but Dean's were currently tucked inside the back of her pants, not just grabbing her ass or slipped inside her back pockets.

Sam didn't even have to clear his throat to get them to disengage because just as intense as they had been, they seemed to flutter apart as if they hadn't ever been wrapped up together. She didn't even cast him a dirty glance when he swatted her ass as he passed by her on his way back into the room to grab another load.

Her eyes were sort of far away as she leaned against the door of the car now, not quite watching Dean, not quite focusing anywhere. And aside from the fact that this was his brother and a woman who he could easily consider a sister, there was something sort of sweet about the amorousness that seemed to be ever present between them.

Maybe, he thought, she would make Dean see what there was to be found in being normal. Fort now however, it was going to be more fun to tease her. He bumped her gently with his bag as he opened up the back door. "Dude, you guys are gross."

It was the tap of his bag against her side that got her attention rather than his voice. Mae cleared her throat. "I…didn't know you were…we were just… nothing…"

He chuckled. "Well said Mae. You know, everyone could see the two of you just now and I know my brother well enough to know he's about to start bragging about banging you."

"I—I don't even know… "she was flustered in a way that surprised Sam as much as it amused him. The young woman then frowned, "He brags about who he bangs to you? That's weird. Besides…he did not… bang…me." She trailed off, realizing that it was odd to be defending herself against Sam's claims when all she could come up with were basically lies, not even basically.

"Okay so, he does that suggestive grin and laugh thing. But word to the wise, motel walls aren't that thick. So unless you invited someone over…"

Her eyes grew saucer big as she realized that it was entirely possible that he had overheard them, at least once. "Oh Christ…" she looked away as her cheeks turned nearly the same color as her hair.

Normally, Sam wouldn't have said a damn thing, mostly because it would only encourage his brother to divulge information he didn't want whatsoever. Even if she wasn't embarrassed about sleeping with Dean, it certainly something that Mae wouldn't boast about. He didn't think that was what made her blush; her embarrassment came from more or less being caught. And that was almost—_almost_— enough to make it worth having overheard them briefly.

"What's wrong?" Dean asked as he came back out to the car with a bag from their room and took note of Mae's uncharacteristic fluster and blush. It was cute but what had brought it on, if it wasn't him, was a bit of a concern.

"You're…you're both…" She couldn't come up with the right words, ruffled to the point where she was only able to walk away from the pair and back to her room to finish packing.

"What's wrong with her?"

"Apparently Mae does has a remaining shred of modesty, despite hooking up with you."

"Dude, lay off. She's a nice girl and just don't pick on her about that."

Sam didn't say anything, mostly out of surprise. Dean wasn't exactly the sentimental sort and while he hadn't said much, because he'd said it about Mae was the kicker. He supposed he still assumed it was a flash in the pan sort of thing and once his brother had gotten what he wanted, he would probably find a way to cut Mae loose.

Not because having Mae around was a bad thing or even that his brother didn't genuinely care about her but because she was real, she brought a certain sense of normalcy to his life. At least in terms of having someone else to love and keep close. That was the exact reason Dean would let her leave or push her away and not go after her. This was a good time to do that and Dean knew that as well as anyone.

And yet…

* * *

><p>It was most certainly the most boring part of the job. Actually, she thought, there was a lot more boring when compared to the exciting parts. Occasionally, now for instance, the mind numbing boredom of traveling cross country on state highways and back ways got to her. Driving sometimes made the trip easier or at the very least more interesting. There was only so much pleasant, pastoral scenery that a girl could take.<p>

How many years had it been since she'd sat in the back seat? On the rare occasions she worked with someone else, it was only ever one other person. To her surprise, she didn't mind it and aside from nothing that they seemed to have in spades. Scanning local papers had lost its appeal about two hours ago. Napping wasn't an option because she thought it would actually leave her more tired and she hadn't reached that point yet. She was tired really, despite having gotten very little actual sleep the previous night.

Maybe he had been watching her, maybe he saw the faint heat color her cheeks as she recalled but when she looked up, she caught his eyes in the rear view mirror. He winked at her, which only served to deepen the blush. It took her back a moment and then, because she knew he wasn't expecting her to do more than blush and look away, she leaned forward and pressed a warm, lingering kiss to the side of his neck, just under his ear.

He wasn't quite blushing but the disbelief was evident when she leaned back and met his eyes in the mirror again. It made her heart thrum in that silly, giddy, and exciting way that was almost embarrassing that he could elicit that with nothing more than an exchange of glances.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

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><p>The next day found all three of them at another random, small town diner. Sam was scrolling through possible cases on his laptop while Mae and Dean scanned the papers. There was something very regimented about the process. It wasn't bad, just odd, Mae thought.<p>

Dean finished and folded the paper. "Alright, dude, not a decent lead in all of Nebraska. What do you got?"

Without looking up at first, Sam rattled off what he'd managed to find. "Well, I've been scanning Wyoming, Colorado, South Dakota. Here – a woman in Iowa fell 10,000 feet from an airplane and survived."

"That sounds more like 'That's Incredible' than 'Twilight Zone'."

"Yeah."

"Red?"

"Well my horoscope says I should be lucky in love and money this week so…unless it's suggesting I'd make a great stripper…I got nothing."

Dean paused a moment to look her over and waggle his eyebrows suggestively but to everyon'e relief, he didn't comment. Instead, he turned to Sam. "Hey, you know, we could just keep heading east. New York, upstate. Could stop by and see Sarah again, huh? She's a cool chick, man. Smokin'. You two seem pretty friendly. What do you say?"

To her credit, Dean thought, she didn't say anything, even though she passed him a rather cool and he knew she was still absolutely annoyed that he was pushing the issue again. But still, she was quiet and unless Sam was paying as close attention to her as he was, he wouldn't have noticed it.

Sam chuckled halfheartedly, "Yeah, I don't know. Maybe someday. But in the meantime, we got a lot of work to do, Dean. And you know that."

"Yeah, you're right. What else you got?" Her cool look turned to a soft smile when Dean didn't press the issue.

"Uh, man in Colorado, local man by the name of Daniel Elkins, was found mauled in his home."

"Daniel? He's dead?" Mae said, surprised by the revelation.

"Elkins. I know that name." Dean pulled the journal out of his coat pocket and started to flip through it

"Doesn't ring a bell. Sounds like the police don't know what to think. First they say it was some sort of bear attack, and now they found signs of robbery." Mae scooted her chair around so that she could read over Sam's shoulder.

"Um-hm." Dean wasn't really listening until he found the entry he was looking for and presented the journal for the other two hunters. "Here, check it out."

"You think it's the same Elkins?"

"It's a Colorado area code."

"Yeah, it's the same one. We need to check it out." She said.

"You seem pretty certain about that."

"Well, locals could be right Sam but…he's one of us so we owe it to him to at least check it out."

"Wait, are you sure?" Dean asked, grabbing her wrist as she stood up and slung her bag over her shoulder.

"I only met him a couple times but yeah, he's an old hand. And…that's just too fishy."

* * *

><p>It was night by the time they made their way from Nebraska to Manning, Colorado. Fortunately, the authorities had long since cleared out and it wasn't particularly difficult to break into Elkins' cabin. The place had been thoroughly tossed and ransacked.<p>

"Looks like the maid didn't come today."

"Show me a neat hunter, just once." Mae muttered. "Yeah, I don't know who the hell would rob Daniel but…I'd say the only reason a human being would get the drop on him is that he was getting on in years."

"So, what do you think it was?"

"Can't say. Not without seeing the body or some kind of…something." She scanned over the room with her flashlight as they separated to search the house.

Sam was still by the door, crouching down to pick something up and examine it. "Hey, there's salt over here. Right inside the door."

Mae crossed the room to one of the windows, checking for salt or some other method of defense there. By the desk, Dean shifted through some papers until he found a journal. He began flipping through it.

"You mean like protection-against-demon salt, or, uh, 'oops, I spilled the popcorn' salt?"

"It's clearly a ring. Looks like you were right Mae."

"Can we just start with that as a baseline assumption? Tell me when I'm wrong."

"Well, you're not wrong."

Sam and Mae joined Dean at the desk where he was still paging through the journal. "That looks a hell of a lot like Dad's."

"Except this dates back to the 60's."

The moved into the next room, where Elkins was killed Dean and Sam move into the room where Elkins died. This room was worse than the first. Everything was broken and shattered and scattered across the floor. The skylights above had been smashed, presumably the point of entry. "Whatever attacked him, it looks like there was more than one."

"Looks like he put up a hell of a fight, too."

"Yeah."

"Good for him."

Carefully, they started going over the room. Sam moved towards the desk as Dean walked towards the middle of the room, followed closely by Mae. He prodded at the empty box that seemingly held a gun and ammo with his foot.

He stepped as lightly and easily as possible as he moved forward through. He couldn't really avoid the crunch of stepping on the littered debris on the floor. He spotted something and crouched down to look. Mae angled her flashlight to provide him more light and reveal the blood and scratches on the floor.

"Got something?"

"I don't know. Some scratches in the floor."

"Death throes maybe?"

"Maybe."

There was something about Dean's mind that most people overlooked; he had an uncanny knack to see patterns with so little to go on. It was pretty impressive. Mae let herself smirk a bit as she watched him take a piece of paper and a pencil in order to take a rubbing of the scratches on the floor. It could have been nothing but there was every chance that it was something important.

"Or maybe a message." He handed the bloodstained paper to Sam, "Look familiar?"

"Three letters, six digits – the location and combination of a post office box. It's a mail drop."

"Just the way Dad does it."

"Must be important if it was the last thing he did before he died. He obviously left it for another hunter."

* * *

><p>They went to the post office and found a letter in the box Elkins had scrawled on his floor. Back in the car, they all stared at the letter for a moment.<p>

""J.W." You think? John Winchester?" Sam asked.

"I don't know. Should we open it?

The knock on the driver's side window startled all of them before any of them were able to answer that question. It must have been amusing enough for John Winchester because he simply grinned at them. Dean rolled down the window. "Dad?"

Rather than stand in the arguably chilly night air, he opened the back door and got in the car. Mae, not quite comfortable with the situation, slid as far as she could to the other side of the backseat.

"Dad, what are you doing here? Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm okay. Look, I read the news about Daniel. I got here as fast as I could. I saw you two up at his place."

"Why didn't you come in, Dad?"

"You know why. Because I had to make sure you weren't followed... by anyone... or anything. Nice job of covering your tracks, by the way."

"Yeah, well, we learned from the best."

Mae allowed herself a small smile, watching Dean and his odd mix of pride and reverence in that statement. She had never once questioned why he'd sided with his father over the whole spell sex thing and while it was easier for her that way, she realized that perhaps she should have wondered. But watching him, seeing that tumultuous flash of emotions in his eyes, she knew that it was impossible for him to have picked otherwise.

"Wait, so you came all the way out here for this Elkins guy?"

"Yeah. He was... he was a good man. He taught me a hell of a lot about hunting."

"You never mentioned him to us."

"We had a – we had kind of a falling out. I hadn't seen him in years. I should look at that."

Dean handed the letter over to his father who opened it up. "If you're reading this, I'm already dead." That son of a bitch."

"What is it?"

"He had it the whole time."

"Dad what?"

"When you searched the place did you – did you see a gun, an antique, a Colt revolver? Did you see it?"

"Uh, there was an old case but it was empty."

"They have it."

"You mean whatever killed Elkins?"

"We got to pick up their trail." Despite the questions from Sam and Dean, John got out of the car. Fortunately, he didn't leave them completely in the dark. He leaned down in the driver's side window.

"Wait, you want us to come with you?" Sam asked.

"If Elkins was telling the truth we got to find this gun."

"The gun? Why?" Sam once again asked.

"Because it's important, that's why."

The tone of exasperation crept in and Mae had to hide her slightly amused expression behind her hand. It wasn't funny but that tension between Sam and John reared up like clockwork. It would almost certain escalate.

"Dad, we don't even know what these things are yet." Sam did make a good point. It was going to be awfully difficult to strategize if they didn't know what they were up against.

"They were what Danny Elkins killed best – vampires."

"Vampires? I thought there was no such thing." Dean said, a little shocked.

"You never even mentioned them, Dad."

"I thought they were extinct. I had thought Elkins and other had wiped them out. I was wrong. Most vampire lore is crap. A cross won't repel them, sunlight won't kill them, and neither will a stake to the heart. But the bloodlust – that part's true. They need fresh human blood to survive. They were once people, so you won't know it's a vampire until it's too late."

* * *

><p>They weren't prepared to take the vampires full on yet and they didn't know where to go looking for them exactly. Instead, the hunters retired to a motel. Her instincts told her this could add a little more tension than she might like but John insisted they all stay together—safety in numbers and all that—and she had questions.<p>

The dust between her and Dean had settled more since the last time she had seen or spoken to John. That didn't mean she was completely comfortable around the man. Her best bet was to push her uneasiness down, deep down. It wouldn't do her any good nor would it preserve anything.

She had poured herself a fresh cup of what could hardly be called coffee and took a seat in the chair across from John. She didn't audibly sigh but her slim frame seemed to deflate as if she had. Mae looked over the room. The boys took the extra time to catch a little shut eye. It was actually a pretty decent set up; having someone to keep watch while the others got to sleep. She knew she should have taken advantage of the situation but even without the dull buzz of the caffeine, she wouldn't have been able to sleep comfortably. So she sat up with John, listening to the police scanner.

John cast a glance over at the young woman. "You should get some sleep too."

She shook her head. "I'm not tired."

It wasn't a nervous gesture when she pushed her hair behind her ear this time. It was thoughtful and somewhat planning, he thought. He watched as her eyes moved across the room, lingering a while on Dean.

"Well, out with it already."

"Out with what?"

"Whatever's turnin' over in that red head of yours."

It made her smile because this time, it not only reminded her of old John but more than anything, it reminded her of Dean. "I've just been wondering…why call me into this? You know, the boys could deal with all of this and uh, I don't see you worryin' about whether or not Dean and I are on good terms. I mean, not that I can't deal with all this but…strange timing and…"

"What do you think?"

It was easier not to look at him. She couldn't quite say that she was intimidated by the man but she felt a type of trepidation in her that her eyes would invariably betray. "I think you either wanted me to be involved in this or you were trying to keep me out of something."

"A little bit of both, sweetheart."

Why on earth the way he said 'sweetheart' made her chuckle was beyond her but she did. "What's the in and what's the out of it?"

"I needed to know that you were in the fight for the right reason and that you could keep the boys safe."

"Except you know I'm in this fight and no matter where I stood with you guys, I'd fight by your side. And like I said, the guys are capable. So what exactly were you keeping me out of?"

"This. This big fight."

"The demon? It's not the first demon I've come up against."

"It ain't the first time you've come up against this demon either. And it's never left you in better shape than when you met it."

Even being as pale as she was and as dim as the room was, he could see the color drain from her face. It took her a moment as dread crept up her spine. "What are you saying, John?"

Her tone was low and quiet, almost a bit emotionless. It might have made her seem cool and collected when she felt her heart hard and fast in her throat. She wasn't going to risk waking either of the boys but John Winchester held a key to this puzzle, one she desperately needed to solve.

"C'mon, you're a smart girl. You put some of this together."

"It's…you think this demon is the same one that…:

"Killed your husband."

She was quiet for a while, letting the voices of the police scanner fill the room, already knowing that he had another 'not your fault' talk loaded and ready to go. Of all people, he knew what happened that night, what she'd gone through but past was past and she knew not even John could change her view on this. Still, they were at the point where it didn't matter who had done what or why, this is where they were and what they had to deal with. "So…what, you thought if I put it all together, I'd go after this thing without you?"

"No. I thought this thing might come after you or one of the boys before we were ready to deal with it. You needed each other and you needed someone to watch your back too."

"Ever the humanitarian." She swallowed the lump in her throat, "I uh, probably wouldn't have gone after it if I wasn't with Sam and Dean."

"Then maybe we should just leave it at that."

It was a legitimate out. Mae knew this was a completely voluntary situation and she could leave. If she didn't want to see the end of this in this way, she could leave. "But I can't because I know it's about more than that night, as horrific as it was. You were there and you know how I feel. Don't get me wrong, I loved my husband but…I could actually move on, you know? I don't need to get that one demon to get on with my life. I just need to keep doing this work on the belief that I can keep someone else from going this way. But what's the real reason you wanted me in on this, is it?"

When he grew quiet, the dread pooled more in her stomach and she found herself wishing she hadn't asked a damn thing. "When I went back looking for this demon…the night you were hurt…"

"That was a demon? That was this demon? The same one that killed your wife and Jess and Dan also—oh God—I think I'm…" she blew out a breath as the dread tried to surface in bodily form. She leaned forward to put her head between her knees. "Fuck."

He could have hit her and it would have left less of an impact. He knew it when he told her. He knew how she would react because without putting the words to it, she knew what he was telling her. She also knew that he was telling her, in his own way, that this was her fight too. This demon had taken family from her too.

"Mae—"

She propped herself up on her elbows enough to speak, plead. "Don't tell Dean. Please. I haven't told him. Please don't be the one to tell him. I—listen, if someone has to tell him, it needs to be me."

"There's nothin' he could do to change it now is there."

She looked over at Dean, trying not to look like she was either checking on him or ignoring him either. She turned her head to look over at John now. "You don't think I should tell him?"

The expression on her face pained him because for better or worse, she'd been like a daughter and he knew exactly how much his son had loved her, perhaps still loved her. Not that either of them had said anything about it but for her to be here, the two had already had to have had a lot of incredibly uncomfortable conversations. "You kept it quiet for nearly a decade for a reason. Does it help him more than hurt him at this point?"

It sounded so wonderfully easy, to not tell him and that would be enough. But that didn't exactly assuage her guild. Maybe nothing would and if that was the only reason she was sharing that little bit with Dean, it wasn't fair. He'd worried about her, tried to take care of her and even took it when she broke his heart. This would just add to his burden. If there was one thing that Dean cared about above all else, it was family. Maybe it was only hurtful to tell him now what he'd lost.

Whatever she might have said next was interrupted by a woman's voice over the scanner. "Unit 22, let me confirm. Mile marker 41, an abandoned car, you need a workup?"

"Copy that. Possible 207. Better get forensics out here."

Just like that, he snapped back into hunter mode as he put the scanner down and grabbed his jacket off the back of the chair. Mae hadn't quite pulled herself together in order to appear normal and she knew she wasn't pulling it off at all.

"Sam, Dean. Let's go."

"Hmm-hmm." Dean had legitimately fallen asleep, in that way that he rarely did.

"Picked up a police call." John informed them. There was no room for question, just the call to spring to action.

"What happened?" Naturally, Sam offered a question up.

"A couple called 911. Found a body in the street. Cops got there, everyone was missing. It's the vampires."

"How do you know?"

John didn't provide much of an answer, he just headed towards the door." Just follow me, okay?"

Sam did and Dean wasn't far behind as he got up. "Vampires. It gets funnier every time I hear it."

Mae had managed to get to her feet although she wasn't entirely sure how. Dean gave her a sleepy sort of smile that on most days would have her stomach trembling just a bit. Instead, she barely noticed it.

"Hey, you good?"

She cleared her throat, focusing on his face and trying to look less like a deer in the headlights. "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm good. I'm fine. I'm good."

She had to press her lips together to keep from going on. Dean knew things would be potentially strange but he thought Mae and his dad would at least be able to fake it. He didn't need to know her to know that she was beyond flustered. He reached out to squeeze her arm softly. "You sure? This is…big, babe. If you're not-."

"I'm fine. I'm ready. Don't worry about me."


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Story info: I've dropped the flash forward-flashback format because I didn't want to spoil some of the upcoming story since it's become maybe my favorite part! So we're still in the middle of Dead Man's Blood. Enjoy!

* * *

><p>Had she been feeling more like herself, she might have gone over with John, just to show that she really was up to this and she was just as much in this fight as anyone else. Instead, she stood with the boys but she was clearly off in her own world. Dean noticed it and was torn between addressing her concerning behavior or his brother's. "Red, you okay?"<p>

She just nodded. "Don't worry about me. I'm-I'll be ready for this fight."

"That's not what I'm talkin' about."

"Just a little frazzled, too much caffeine."

It wasn't true and he wondered just how long she would try to keep up the rouse. Before he could come close to asking, she tipped her chin in the direction his father was coming from.

"I don't see why we couldn't have gone over with him." Sam said.

"Oh, don't tell me it's already starting."

"What's starting?"

John joined them. "What do you got?" Dean asked him.

"It was them alright. It looks like they're heading west. We're gonna have to double back to get around that detour."

"How can you be so sure?" The anger in his voice was evident.

"Sam..."

"I just wanna know we're going in the right direction."

"We are."

"How do you know?"

"I found this." John produced a tooth from his jacket pocket, handing it to Dean.

"It's a ... vampire fang."

"Not fangs – teeth. A second set descends when they attack." He focused with annoyance back on Sam. "Any more questions? Alright, let's get out of here. We're losing daylight." John started walking back to his truck. "Hey, and Dean, why don't you touch up your car before you get rust? I wouldn't have given you the damn thing if I thought you were gonna ruin it."

Dean tried to cover up the initial hurt with an awkward but faltering look and his brother did nothing much to help when he offered back an 'I told you so' smirk. Taking note of the exchange however, Mae let her hand brush against Dean's. There wasn't really time for more overt of a display but seeing the heart hurt on his face kind of snapped her out of her funk.

She took her seat in the back, behind Dean, if only so she could lean forward and drape her arm over one shoulder and rest her chin on the other once they were moving. It was oddly comforting, a sort of intimacy that involved nothing more than her being close. Even the small peck to his cheek was so chaste and sweet that he almost didn't think it was real. He turned his face towards her a bit and she offered him a little smile. "So what's your dad got on vampires."

He let himself grin a little bit as he read over the information he now had on vampires while Mae read over his shoulder. "Vampire nest in groups of 8 to 10. Smaller packs are sent out to hunt for food. Victims are taken to the nest, where the pack keeps them alive, bleeding them for days or weeks. I wonder if that's what happened to that 911 couple?"

"That's probably what Dad's thinking. Of course, it would be nice if he just told us what he thinks."

"So it is starting."

"What?"

She knew Sam meant well, that from his perspective, he wasn't being unreasonable. Maybe he wasn't but now, Mae thought, wasn't exactly the time for this old fight. Dean thought similarly, although she also assumed that it went beyond the job. Dean wanted all of them to be not only working together but also on good terms.

"Sam, we've been looking for Dad all year, now we're not with him for more than a couple hours and there's static already?"

"No. Look, I'm happy he's okay, alright? And I'm happy that we're all working together again."

"Good."

"It's just the way he treats us like we're children."

"Oh, God."

Sam went on. "He, he barks orders at us, Dean. He expects us to follow him without question. He keeps us on some crap need-to-know deal."

"He does what he does for a reason."

"What reason?"

"Our job! There's no time to argue. There's no margin for error, alright? It's just the way the old man runs things."

"Yeah, well maybe that worked when we were kids, but not anymore, alright? Not after everything you and I have been through, Dean. I mean, are you telling me you're cool with just falling into line and letting him run the whole show?"

Dean hesitated for a moment with his reply and from her position, Mae could feel him tense. "If that's what it takes."

"And you're okay with things like this Mae? I mean you of all people have enough reasons to doubt him."

"Hey, I would doubt him if, if he were acting erratically or out of the norm but this is John. And I haven't hunted a vampire, let alone vampires. Then there's this gun…Listen, I took up with you boys and that is definitely not something I'm used to doing."

"But we talk to you. We all talk. We don't just…go off and expect everyone else to follow."

"Maybe not but it's not the worse to have someone run lead once in a while."

"And you think this is a once in a while thing?"

"I, I don't know Sam. I know this isn't about vampires for your dad. They're just a means to an end."

* * *

><p>They'd searched for and followed even the barest hint of a trail. Sam thought it should have been easier, could have been easier if their dad had simply let all three of them help him. Instead, they'd spent most of the day following John. Sam drove simply because he'd go insane if he had to sit still that long. Dean kept pretty quiet in the passenger street while Mae had dozed off at some point.<p>

Every so often, Dean would glance back to steal a glance of the young woman. He felt like he'd gone a little soft when he watched her peaceful, sleeping face and sensed his heart softening every time. He knew something was wrong with her, something had happened in that time she was alone with his dad that left her dazed. They didn't really have any time to discuss it and while he didn't have any interest in getting into another talk about their emotions, he really needed to know because he simply had a bad feeling about it.

His train of thought was derailed when his phone rang. "Yeah, alright, got it." He said after a while and hung up the phone. "Pull off the next exit."

"Why?"

"Cause Dad thinks we got the vampire's trail."

"How?"

"I don't know, he didn't say."

Sam tromped on the gas, speeding past John's truck before he yanked the wheel and brought the fact to an abrupt stop across both lanes, forcing him father to slam on the breaks. The move also jostled awake a rather confused Mavis. Sam was out of the car before she even really knew what was happening.

"What hell? What's wrong?"

Any other time, he might have found the sleepy blink that followed the questions cute but under the circumstances, he was more concerned about what was going down between his brother and dad. "Sam and dad, barkin' at each other yet again."

"You need me?"

"No…stay here unless I give you the signal. Shit, those two…"

Mae squeezed his shoulder encouragingly and then let Dean jump into the fray too.

"What the hell was that?"

"We need to talk." Sam demanded of his father.

"About what?"

"About everything. Where are we going, Dad? What's the big deal about this gun?"

John and Sam faced off with Dean served as referee. "Sammy, come on, we can Q & A after we kill all the vampires."

"Your brother's right. We don't have time for this."

"Last time we saw you, you said it was too dangerous to be together. Now, out of the blue, you need our help. Now, obviously something big is going down and we want to know what!"

"Get back in the car." John ordered.

"No."

"I said get back in the damn car."

"Yeah, and I said no.

"Alright, you made your point, tough guy. Look, we're all tired, we can talk about this later." Dean grabbed his brother and shoved him back. "Sammy, I mean it, come on."

The boys moved to get in the car. "This is why I left in the first place."

"What'd you say?" John asked incredulously.

"You heard me."

"Yeah, you left. Your brother and me – we needed you. You walked away, Sam." John shoved at Sam, "You walked away!"

"Stop it, both of you!" Dean tried to intervene.

Sam was practically spitting mad. "You were the one who said 'Don't come back.', Dad. You're the one who closed that door, not me! You were just pissed off you couldn't control me anymore!"

It was very nearly becoming a full on fist fight between the two and it wouldn't have been the first one but as John grabbed Sam, Dean broke in between them in an attempt to get them to stop. "I said stop it! Stop it! Stop it! That's enough!"

He managed to put enough distance between them before he turned to John. "That means you, too."

They took a second before Sam got back in the car and his dad stormed back to his truck. It was then that he noticed Mae had gotten out of the car, at least as far as to stand with arms propped on the roof. For anyone else, it might have been an almost casual, observing stance but he knew she was ready to jump into the fray should she need to help. "You okay?" She asked.

His reply was laced with defeat. "Terrific."

* * *

><p>From the distance, in the shelter of the wooded area, they watched as one of the vampires drove up to the vampires' lair. Another one stood at the barn door and ushered the other inside.<p>

"Son of a bitch." Dean swore, "So they're really not afraid of the sun."

"Direct sunlight hurts like a nasty sunburn. The only way to kill them is by beheading. And, yeah, they sleep during the day. It doesn't mean they won't wake up."

"So, I guess walking right in is not our best option."

"Actually, that's the plan."

Back in the clearing in the woods, the four hunters got their gear ready. It was quite easy to feel out gamed, equipment wise, when John's truck was tricked out with a motorized weapon's locker and well-stocked, highly organized contents. Their weapon's stash was a bit more hodgepodge and vintage. "Hey, Dad, I got an extra machete if you need one."

The elder Winchester produced a huge, toothed machete. "Think I'm okay, thanks."

"Wow."

They went about strapping on their weaponry when John leaned against the truck and let out a heavy sigh. "So... You kids really want to know about this Colt?

The three of them exchanged glances before Sam answered. "Yes, Sir."

"It's just a story...a legend, really. Well, I thought it was. Never really believed it until I read Daniel's letter. Back in 1835, when Halley's comet was overhead, the same night those men died at the Alamo, they say Samuel Colt made a gun...A special gun. He made it for a hunter – a man like us, only on horseback. The story goes, he made 13 bullets. This hunter used the gun a half dozen times before he disappeared, the gun along with him. Somehow, Daniel got his hands on it. They say...They say this gun can kill anything."

"Kill anything, like supernatural anything?"

"Like the demon." Sam finished.

"Yeah, the demon. Ever since I picked up its trail, I've been looking for a way to destroy that thing. Find the gun... we may have it."

* * *

><p>As quietly as possible, they all snuck into the barn through one of the windows. Sam and Dean stayed in the main room which was filled with vampires in hammocks and presumably the woman who had called 911 tied up. John and Mae went off in another direction to search out the gun.<p>

Moving around the barn was eerie and they all nearly held their breath for fear that even that noise would disturb the lair. They all had their jobs to do and going in like this meant they would only have the once chance to save the couple and get the gun.

Dean accidentally knocked over a beer bottle and into one of the hammocks. He swiftly jumped back with his hand on his machete. Fortunately, the vampire remained asleep and undisturbed by the sound or movement. Sam moved around a post to find the 911 lady tied up there. In a hush toned he called over his brother.

Quietly, he and Dean crouched down beside her to untie the ropes that held her when they heard a noise. "There's more." Dean whispered.

Moving towards the sound, he found a cage full of people the vampires had been feeding on. The cage was padlocked but finding a bale hook nearby, Dean was able to pry a hinge from the wood holding the cage together. The sound was sudden and he paused to make see if that had caused the vampires to awake.

There was some stirring from them but none of them woke. Meanwhile, John and Mae snuck down the corridor towards the back bedroom. There they found two more vampires curled up in bed and what was very likely the gun they were looking for in a holster on the bed post. Mae stood in the doorway, machete half out, ready to strike should one of the vampires wake or come upon them. The creak of the step when John put his weight on it made her jump more than she wanted to admit.

He put out a hand, signaling her to stay put as he moved towards the bed to retrieve the gun. If all went as planned, they could get the gun and save the couple without the vampires even knowing they were there.

The woman Sam was untying stirred and woke. "Hey, hey, shhh. I'm here to help you." He tried to calm her.

However, she began to scream in warning and he realized she had been turned. Sam jumped back, his hand on his machete. John had reached out and touched the gun when the woman's scream pulled his attention. Mae too turned to look back at the other room only to have her attention drawn back to John when he was thrown across the room, into the wall. She was ready to strike, with her blade drawn except John grabbed the nearest weapon—a beer bottle—and he hurled it through the window, letting the light pour in. It was enough of a distratction. John ordered her to go and after only a short moment of hesitation, she took off.

Behind her, she heard John yell out, "Boys, run," before she heard his boots quickly pounding after her.

Mae knew the two vampires from the bedroom would be after them in short order. She also hoped that she wasn't running right into the nest of vampires, into a fight that was potentially more than the four of them could handle. But a quick glance through the barn showed her that they were following Sam and Dean out the front door, leaving just enough luck for them to escape the way they came in. She climbed up and out the window. Because it wasn't pulling her back, she figured the hand on her backside was John's urging her to hurry and get out quicker since she had to slow a bit to sheath her machete.

She landed with an inelegant roll but she was out and she heard an 'oomph' beside her as he made a similar landing. She was on her feet and running through the woods, towards the vehicles, hoping that they might have a better chance at a fight in the open or that perhaps that the daylight was enough to keep them off their trail for a little while.

Up ahead, she heard Dean call out for them and she, without a doubt that he'd run right back in if he thought the vampires had caught them. Mae made it out of the woods first and was just as relieved as the boys to see each other there. John wasn't far behind but when the boys moved to keep going, John stopped. "They won't follow. They'll wait till tonight. Once a vampire gets your scent, it's for life."

"What the hell do we do now?"

"You've gotta find the nearest funeral home, that's what." John said, much to Dean's confusion.

* * *

><p>"You wanna come with or stay here?"<p>

John and Sam were both heading inside the motel room. She supposed she could have stayed but it seemed somehow smarter to stay paired up. "Dead guys or your brother and dad sniping at each other? Yeah I'll take dead guy duty."

"Good." He said with a little smile and a reassuring squeeze to her hand that seemed very out of place, considering the fact that they were about to break into a funeral home and steal someone's blood.

Mae found herself wishing for a little more action now that the adrenaline kick from the vampire's lair was wearing off and she was left with that uncomfortable, nervous feeling in the pit of her stomach being with him again. Especially because he still held her hand in his soft, steady grip. His hands were so warm and familiar.

Dean let her hand go when he went to turn the key in the ignition. "So, what's wrong with you?" He asked after they had pulled out of the parking lot and were headed down the road.

"What? Nothing. I'm fine."

He looked back over to her with a mischievous grin. "I know you're fine, Maeby. But I know you're also acting really weird since we met up with Dad. If this is about…I mean, there's nothing—I get why you might feel…weird and yeah, it's weird but …"

"It's not. It's only sort of weird but not because of that. I'm just—John told me something. It's just left me a little…off."

Dean didn't even try to keep the concern and confusion off his face. "What did he tell you?"

"Nothing important for right now."

"Yeah, seems that way."

"Really. It's nothing for right now. I promise. It's just…" she took a sharp breath. "I—it had something to do with my husband so…I'll tell you later."

"Yeah sure."

They drove for a while in a silence. It wasn't quite uncomfortable but it wasn't exactly what he was hoping for. Hell, he didn't know exactly what he wanted out of this moment. This was a job; it wasn't like this was some perfect moment for them to have a little bit of romance.

"Pull over."

"Why? What's wrong?"

Mae shook her head. She put a hand on his knee in hopes of reassuring him that there wasn't something wrong, not vampire wrong at any rate. "Nothing. We're fine. Just pull over. Please."

He did as she asked and was quite surprised when she slid up next to him on the seat, placed a hand on his cheek and turned his face so she could plant a searing kiss to his mouth. "I want you Dean. I want you in ways that sometimes make me think I'm crazy. And I want to be with you, doing this for reasons I don't even know sometimes. I don't know why. When I started this, I didn't know why and I really don't know why no. All I know is…I think maybe that want could become a need."

"You're worried you might _need_ to be with me?"

"I'm worried that I might never know why."

"Does it matter?"

She studied his eyes, always amazed at how beautiful they were. "Yeah. It—it matters. I don't know why it matters. I just know that it matters. The reason…it doesn't matter what the reason is, I just need to know it. Does that make any sense?"

"No," he scoffed, "but you confuse the hell outta me on a daily basis." He let his thumb stroke over her lips after he cupped her face. Then he smiled at her softly. "You confuse me but…I'm pretty sure that I need to be with you."

"Do you need to be with me right now?"

"We've got a job."

"We've got 20 minutes. It's not like dead guys keep strict schedules and we've got a little time before the vamps come after us."

Dean pulled her in for a deep kiss while easing her over so she could straddle his lap. "I could begin to like being confused by you Mae."

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><p>AN: Okay so I indulged on the ending a bit because I wanted to answer the question of what was taking Dean so long!

I also want to thank everyone who's been favoriting and following the story and an extra special thanks to sarahmichellegellarfan1 who left me just a ton of reviews on this series, filling my inbox with happiness!


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

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><p>It wasn't the hardest thing to get into the funeral home with Mae posing as a grieving widow and causing enough of a scene to give Dean a window to get into the back of the building and 'procure' some dead man's blood. The ride back to the motel was not nearly as much fun as the getting to the funeral home but he supposed there were only so many personal liberties they could take when they were on the job.<p>

He would however not underestimate either her passion or incredibly limber frame. This really wasn't like the first time they had dated at all and that idea left him somewhat on the fence. He liked it but he wondered if he would ever get used to it or if he would continue to miss what they once had. And he wondered if she felt the same way. He wondered if she though he was different too and if she missed the way things used to be as well. However, now wasn't really the time to focus on that either.

At least she seemed a little less jittery now. "So how have we not addressed the fact that we're dealing with a whole mess of vampires?"

Her lips quirked. "Yeah, what's next? Bigfoot."

"You didn't know they were still out there?"

"I haven't come up against one. They seem to lay pretty low. What else do you suppose is out there that we haven't even thought about being out there?"

"Damn, I don't wanna know."

"Do you think your dad is right about this gun?"

"He believes it enough to go up against the vampires and to come all the way out here from wherever he was to find it. That's good enough for me. What? You don't believe him?"

"No I do. I mean, I can't remember the last time he was wrong about something like this. The idea of this gun though…can you imagine?"

"What you think if it's real and we find it and it works that this'll be all over? Like Sam?"

"No. It's just one demon. There are hundreds, maybe thousands, maybe more evil things out there and killing one won't stop them. And we're already like this. I do not see a way out of hunting. I mean othr than the big way out."

"Good."

"Good? Dude, you're kinda twisted, you know that?"

"You're twisted."

They exchanged a sweet little laugh.

* * *

><p>He held the door open for her when they got back to the motel and both were rather surprised to find Sam and John not fighting but laughing instead. "Whoo! Man, there's some heavy security to protect a bunch of dead guys."<p>

"Did you get it?" John asked.

Dean reached into his coat pocket with one hand while he dropped his keys into the other side and pulled out a bottle in a paper bag. From the bag, he produced the bottle of blood and He pulls the bottle out of the bag and handed it to John who smirked either with pride or triumph. For Dean's sake, Mae hoped it was pride. He deserved that much.

"You know what to do." He said, looking between the three young hunters as he placed the bottle down on the desk.

* * *

><p>That night, they went after the vampires and as usual John had a plan. That plan left Dean on the road with the Impala with the hood up as he busied himself checking out what was wrong.<p>

He was feeling impatient, not scared exactly. He knew that he was more prepared than most despite playing bait. So when one of the female vampires walked up to him, he was ready. "Car trouble? Let me give you a lift... take you back to my place."

"I'll pass. I usually draw the line at necrophilia."

"Oh..." When she backhanded him, he wasn't expecting just how strong she would be and it sent him to the ground.

Another vampire, this one larger and more intimidating certainly, came out of the woods. The female, still stronger than Dean would have guessed, grabbed him by the face and lifted him. "I don't normally get this friendly till the second date, but..." Dean retorted.

"You know, we could have some fun. I always like to make new friends."

The vampire kissed him and he was pretty sure that Mae would take particular pleasure in killing her just for that. "Oh, sorry. I don't really stay with a chick that long. Definitely not eternity."

Suddenly, the other vampire got shot through the chest and it wasn't too long before the other one was shot in similar fashion. "Damn it." She cursed hotly.

John, Sam and Mae came out of the woods now with crossbows in hand. Sam drew his machete and stood behind the male vampire, ready to take him out if the dead man's blood wasn't enough to keep him incapacitated. John swaggered up to Kate.

"Barely even stings."

"Give it time, sweetheart. That arrow's soaked in dead man's blood. It's like poison to you, isn't it?"

While he didn't have to, Dean caught her when she passed out.

"Load her up. I'll take care of this one." John offered.

Sam only hesitated for a second before he followed Mae and Dean, leaving John to kill the other vampire.

* * *

><p>They moved further down the road, away from where they left the other vampire's body to a more idea spot where with any luck, they would be able to throw the vampires off their trail at least for a while. They had taken the woman with them and currently had her tied to a tree, still suffering from the effects of the dead man's blood. They lit a bonfire and John and Dean were gathering a few supplies out of the truck. He handed his son a bundle. "Toss this on the fire. Saffron, skunk cabbage and trillium – it'll block our scent, and hers, until we're ready."<p>

"Stuff stinks."

"Well, that's the idea. Dust your clothes with the ashes and you'll stand a chance of not being detected."

"You sure they'll come after her?" Sam asked.

"Yeah. Vampires mate for life. She means more to the leader than the gun. But the blood sickness is going to wear off soon, so you don't have a lot of time."

"Half hour ought to do it."

"Then I want you out of the area as fast as you can."

It wasn't an order per say but it also wasn't a real plan. It wasn't the sort of plan that John came up with to get them all in and out of a fight in one peace. Sam protested. "But –"

"Whoa, Dad, you can't take care of them all yourself."

There was a strange sort of confidence that John had when he said it but it was somehow not entirely believable. "I'll have her, and the Colt."

"But after. We're gonna meet up, right? Use the gun together. Right?" John didn't look back at Sam. "You're leaving again, aren't you? You still want to go after the demon alone? You know, I don't get you. You can't treat us like this."

"Like what?"

"Like children."

"You are my children. I'm trying to keep you safe."

"Dad, all due respect, but, uh, that's a bunch of crap."

They would have expected that from Sam but coming from Dean, it was a rather shocking thing to hear. It wasn't untrue but it was an unexpected statement.

"Excuse me?"

Dean was loyal to a fault and Mae had been fairly certain that he would have tried to say anything to keep any combination of his family members happy. This wasn't exactly one of them but to his credit, he stood by his statement. " You know what Sammy and I've been hunting. Hell, you sent us on a few hunting trips yourself. You can't be that worried about keeping us safe."

"It's not the same thing, Dean."

"Then what is it? Why do you want us out of the big fight?"

"This demon... it's a bad son of a bitch. I can't make the same moves if I'm worried about keeping you alive."

"You mean you can't be as reckless." Dean argued.

"Look, I don't expect to make it out of this fight in one piece. Your Mother's death... it almost killed me. I can't watch my children die, too. I won't."

"What happens if you die? Dad, what happens if you die, we could've done something about it. You know, I've been thinking, I – I think maybe that Sammy's right about this one. I think we should do this together. We're stronger as a family, Dad, we just are, you know it."

"We're running out of time. You do your job and you get out of the area. That's an order."

* * *

><p>Sam glowered in the backseat and Dean gripped the wheel righter than normal. Even in the dark, she could see his jaw working. Of course, she wasn't about to bring anything up or try to getting anything out of either brother because despite the fact that the big fight seemed to have already happened, either one could boil right over. For better or worse, she didn't have to. "You could have gone with him."<p>

There wasn't anger or poison in the words; she could certainly imagine it. Instead, she thought he said it as sort of a petition. "I'm genuinely surprised to hear you say that Dean."

"What? You're not his kid."

Mae knew he didn't mean it in and hurtful way. She also knew that while biologically true and while there perhaps after all that had happened between her and John that she wouldn't feel any kind of familiar affection, she still did. She still felt as if she were just as much family as back in the day.

"I guess I'm not but I didn't exactly see him as being the flexible sort on this thing, did you?"

Dean was quiet. "He'll get himself killed and he doesn't care. I just don't get it."

"Of course not." Sam said from the back.

"What does that mean?"

"That you can't get it." Mae jumped in before it could escalate between the brothers.

"No, I get that he lost mom, that Sam lost Jess and you lost your husband but we still have each other. Why offer this demon more? Why should we give it more?"

He wasn't wrong. Maybe it was more right than anyone else in his family. But it didn't solve anything to do with that evening. "Yeah well… we still have those people to save, don't we?"

* * *

><p>Breaking into the barn was getting a little too easy. Almost. Some of them had gone, undoubtedly in search of the vampire John was holding hostage. Fewer of them there would make this part of their job easier. They caught one drinking and Dean snuck up behind him. "Boo." He said before cutting off the vampire's head.<p>

"You get the people, I'll check for others."

"Be careful."

Mae rolled her eyes. "Yes, dad."

He shook his head with a little smirk on his face before he rushed over to the cage where the rest of the people are being held captive.

"I told you I'd come back." He took the bale hook out of his pocket and popped off the remaining hinge to free the vampire's victims.

With the three of them working to decapitate the remaining vampires and getting the prisoners out of the nest and back towards the road, it didn't take particularly long to finish their task. It also didn't take any discussion or debate for them to decide that they weren't going to let John go up against the remaining vampires alone. That just didn't make sense.

The trio booked it through the woods from the barn as fast as they could after they'd grabbed their blades, crossbows and bolts dipped in dead man's blood. Back on the road, as the head vampire advanced on Dean, Mae landed a shot with a crossbow bolt through the sternum.

The three hunters came running out of woods. Dean took aim and shot another vampire through the chest. Sam charged ahead, with blade drawn, ready to take out yet another one but he was hit back by the lead vampire and dropped his machete. Dean dropped his crossbow and dashed down to save Sam, gabbing his discarded knife in the process.

The vampire hauled Sam to his feet and wrapped his arm around the young man's neck, tight enough to have him gasping for air and prying at this arm with both hands. "Don't! I'll break his neck."

Dean stopped in his tracks but still held the machete, ready to strike. Further up the hill, Mae aimed her crossbow but found a decent shot almost impossible to make. Still, she had it leveled at the vampire just in case.

"Put the blade down."

But Dean didn't until the vampire tightened his grip on Sam's throat. He wasn't going to risk it and putting up his free hand, he reluctantly dropped the blade with a clank. The vampire cast a glance at Mae and because she couldn't make the shot, she lowered her crossbow too.

"You people. Why can't you just leave us alone. We have as much right to live as you do."

"I don't think so."

He spun around to face John, who had come to, still holding Sam in his grip.

There was no more argument or discussion as John leveled the Colt and shot the vampire in the head. It was unclear who was more surprised by the move. He let go of Sam and he stumbled back into his brother's steadying grip.

The female vampire they'd incapacitated yelled out his name. "Luthor!"

However, the all watched in some combination of shock and horror as the vampire died, wherever evil spirit or entity or whatever left his body and he eventually collapsed to the ground. Realizing that her mate was truly and genuinely dead, the woman lunged at John, only to be pulled back by the remaining vampire. "Kate, don't!"

With vengeance in her eyes, she acquiesced, both vampires getting into their car and driving off. Mae had made her way off the hill to join the boys where they all looked at John with somewhat perturbed looks. In true John Winchester fashion, he smiled back at them.

* * *

><p>Back at the motel, it would have been nice to catch a few hours of sleep but it wasn't wise to stay when they had two remaining vampires who were even more pissed off now and, as John told them, had their scent for life. Instead, they were packing so they could put more distance between them and Colorado.<p>

John walked back into the room after putting his gear in his truck. "So, boys..."

Mae held back a tiny laugh when both boys turned their attention to their father and all but saluted, despite the fact that she very nearly did the same.

"Yes, Sir." Sam said.

"You ignored a direct order back there."

"Yes, Sir."

"Yeah, but we saved your ass."

Both Sam and Mae passed rather surprised sidelong glances at the man. It truly wasn't his style to backtalk his father. Anyone else, sure, but not his dad. Maybe spending so much time with Sam was rubbing off on him.

John pinned him with hard look as he evaluated what his eldest son said. But Dean stared right back, not breaking eye contact as he might have normally done.

"You're right."

"I am?"

"It scares the hell out of me. You kids are all I've got. But I guess we are stronger as a family. So... we go after this damn thing... together."

"Yes, Sir." They answered in unison.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

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><p>After the Winchester heart to heart, they decided to stay put and lay out the case for the big hunt. Mae couldn't say it was tense exactly but she felt like it was distinctly stuffy. Maybe it was the creepy mounted heads on the wall. Maybe it was the serial killer style wall of weather reports and other bits and pieces of information John had assembled on this demon.<p>

Whatever it was, a distinct feeling of distress. Maybe she was just worried that John might spill the one secret of hers that he knew that had the potential to screw things up between her and Dean. She wasn't certain he needed to know but if he was going to find out, it had to come from her. Just not now. She pressed her lips together and tried to focus back on what John was telling them

John sat at the desk while Sam leaned against the kitchenette counter and Dean stood, regarding the Colt. Mae stood near the door, arms crossed over her chest. John gestured to the wall. "So, this is it. This is everything I know. Look, our whole lives we've been searching for this demon, right? Not a trace, just nothing until about a year ago. For the first time, I picked up a trail."

"And that's when you took off."

"Yeah. That's right. The demon must have come out of hiding or hibernation."

Dean came over to John. "Alright, so what's this trail you found?"

"It starts in Arizona, then New Jersey, California. Houses burn down to the ground. It's going after families, just like it went after us."

"Families with infants?" Sam asked.

"Yeah. The night of the kid's six month birthday."

"I was six months old that night?

John confirmed it. "Exactly six months."

"So, basically, this demon is going after these kids for some reason, same way it came for me?" John wouldn't or couldn't answer that question. " So, Mom's death, Jessica – it's all cause of me?"

"We don't know that, Sam."

Despite her concern and trying to piece together the demon's interest in her—or at least why John thought this demon was the same one who'd come after her—she allowed herself a small smile as Dean stepped forward to defend Sam, even if it was from himself.

"Oh really, cause I'd say we're pretty damn sure, Dean!"

"For the last time, what happened to them is not your fault."

"Yeah, you're right, it's not my fault, but it's my problem!"

Dean yelled back at his brother. "No, it's not your problem. It's our problem!"

"Okay." John declared as he rose to his feet. "That's enough."

"So, why is it doing it? What does it want?"

"Look, I wish I had more answers. I do. I've always been one step behind it. Look, I've never gotten there in time to save..." He wasn't able to finish his statement.

Mae had been quiet for so long that when she made her way up to the wall to examine the information John had put together, she went almost unnoticed until she spoke.

"Wilsall?" Mae finally said, in a soft, almost disbelieving voice. Sure, he'd told her he pieced it together and she more or less believed it. But seeing it laid out like this made her realize the work, the hours and hours of work that went into this. He wouldn't have brought it up if it wasn't something real and something big.

"Yeah. All the signs were there, both times. I don't entirely know why but… yeah."

"And it's not just… some demon? Some random demon?" She asked.

He shook his head. "I doubt it."

That look on her face was heartbreaking and Dean wished there was something he could do or say. He didn't know exactly what had happened to her but it left her fairly shaken at the idea of the demon they were hunting being the same one that had killed her husband. It didn't surprise him though. If this demon had an axe to grind against his family, Mae fell right in the middle of that. Why wouldn't it go after her too?

He let his hand brush against her, drawing her attention up towards his face and he offered her a sympathetic look. He didn't say or do anything more because he didn't want to embarrass her. "Alright, so how do we find it before it hits again?"

"There are signs. Look, it took me a while to see the pattern, but in the days before these fires, signs crop up in an area – cattle deaths, uh, temperature fluctuations, electrical storms. And then I went back and checked, and..."

"These things happened in Lawrence." Dean finished for his dad.

"The week before your Mother died. And in Palo Alto... before Jessica. And these signs - they're starting again."

"Where?" Sam asked.

"Salvation, Iowa."

* * *

><p>It was sort of odd, Mae thought, that John wouldn't let any of them give him a break from driving. After all, Colorado to Iowa wasn't exactly a short drive. It was entirely doable in a day but far easier with someone else to switch off with. There were enough of them to make it all workout but he took the nearly half day of driving on himself.<p>

Maybe he'd just become set in his ways when it came to hunting like this. Maybe being with Sam or Dean presented two different problems in spending any amount of time with either of them separately. Although Dean was probably desperate for the attention. She wasn't sure what she would have done if she'd offer to share to share the driving with John. It was either going to be painfully awkward or she was going to have to talk about things that for the time being, were better left unsaid. So maybe it was better that the three of them followed behind.

Just inside of Salvation, Iowa , John abruptly pulled off the road and Dean followed suit. The older man was obviously upset when he got out of the car and the trio only exchanged a momentary glance before they got out too.

"Damn it!"

"What is it?"

John hit his truck as he walked towards Dean. "Son of a bitch!"

"What is it?" He asked again

"I just got a call from Caleb."

"Is he okay?"

"He's fine. Jim Murphy's dead." Mae supposed it didn't occur to John to sugarcoat it and she assumed it wouldn't have done any good for any of them.

"Pastor Jim?" Sam asked and John nodded in confirmation. "How?"

"Throat was slashed. He bled out." Okay, that could have used a little bit of sugarcoating. The idea of Jim dying was one thing but being killed…Mae couldn't quite shake off the image in her head. "Caleb said they found traces of sulfur at Jim's place."

"A demon." John's non confirmation was confirmation in and of itself. "The demon?"

"I don't know. Could be he just got – he got careless, he slipped up. Maybe the demon knows we're getting close."

Dean heard Mae curse under her breath behind him but he couldn't give her the attention he wanted to at the moment. "What do you want to do?" He asked his father.

"Now we act like every second counts. There's two hospitals and a health center in this county. We spit up, we cover more ground. I want records. I want a list of every infant that's going to be six months old in the next week."

"Dad, that could be dozens of kids. How the hell are we gonna know which one's the right one?" Sam pointed out.

"We'll check them all, that's how." Sam looked dubious. "You got any better ideas?"

"No, Sir."

John turned and started back to his truck but stopped. Dean must have heard the cessation of his foot falls and he focused back on his father. "Dad?"

"Yeah." John turned back to them, obviously upset, "It's Jim. You know, I can't..." He sighed. "This ends now. I'm ending it. I don't care what it takes."

There was something a little unsettling about seeing John like this. It wasn't that he was unfeeling or unbothered by the work; he was. He usually dealt with it by burying it away. Or booze. And none of them could judge him on that since it was a fairly common reaction for all of them. He didn't say anything more and they didn't argue. They just when back to work.

* * *

><p>Dean dropped Mae and Sam off at Salvation Medical Center. Since there were four of them and three hospitals, Sam insisted on going with Mae, arguing that she and Dean would get too distracted if they teamed up. It wasn't true in this case, at least not as far as anything physical might go but Mae agreed to it since she couldn't guarantee that they wouldn't get caught up in something that was emotionally wrought.<p>

Fortunately, working together the pair managed to identify a few possible targets the demon might go after and it didn't take them the hours and hours they thought it might take. They were heading back to the motel to meet up with John and Dean. Sam was looking through his notebook one more time when he was stopped. At first, he tried to shake it off but it just kept coming and he pressed his hand to his forehead in pain.

"Sam? Are you okay?"

He didn't respond right away until he had a break of clarity. "Another vision." He managed to bite out before the images appear in front of his eyes again.

Mae placed an arm around him, grabbing his arm firmly as she guided him to a slightly safer place. For good measure, she placed her other hand on his other arm too. His breath came a little quicker now and he idly wiped his hand on his jeans, trying to appear normal while he really wasn't.

He was appreciative of having Mae's steadying embrace but he shrugged out of it to put his notebook in his backpack and take out a map.

"A train."

"A train?"

"Yeah. I think I know how the demon is going after. I saw a woman with a baby and…there was something, someone after her. Like mom. Like Jess."

"And you saw a train?"

"No, I heard a train."

Mae held one side of the map while he held the other and looked for an area where a train ran close by a residential neighborhood.

"Here. We have to go here." He pointed to the area on the map.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, yeah…if we can stop this…"

"Okay but…are you sure you're okay?"

He was quiet a moment. "I'll be better when this thing is dead."

"Maybe we should call Dean or your Dad before we…follow this vision of yours."

"No, no, we should let them focus on getting the other names of families because I could be wrong and…we just need to check it out."

"Fair enough. Don't pass out on me, okay? I hate dragging your dead weight around."

He grinned a little. "Deal."

* * *

><p>She was worried about him. It wasn't the first vision he'd had when she was around but it was the first time she'd witnessed it happening and it was strange to watch but be unable to help. Seeing the result, his near panic and determination was even more worrisome. The one thing she knew was that letting him go off on his own didn't seem like a good option. He wasn't going to stop if she decided not to go with him. So she had to go with him.<p>

They made their way to the most likely neighborhood he'd seen in the vision. They had picked up their pace to a light jog down the street when he stopped and the next one hit. This time, he grasped at her sleeve to balance himself.

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah. It's got to be close. The visions are stronger the closer we get so…" He paused again, looking around when he saw the house that looked just like the one from his vision. "There."

"There? That's the house?"

"Do you always have to ask me?"

"Dude, you're the one getting demon-grams piped in to your brain, not me. I'm just tryin' to keep up."

He took a breath and nodded. "Yeah, sorry I—Her! Mae, that's the woman from my vision!"

Once again, he grasped her sleeve, a little more desperately than before as he pointed out a woman pushing a stroller down the street.

"Okay, don't freak her out by being all crazy and out of breath."

He didn't let go of her arm while he made them jog over to the woman.

"Hi. Here, let me hold that for you." It was almost normal and natural as he took hold of the stroller to let the woman close up her umbrella. "You don't need that anymore."

The woman laughed. "Oh, thanks."

Casual wasn't exactly working for Sam. He was still a little panicky and slightly out of breath as he looked in the stroller at the baby. "She's gorgeous. Is she yours?"

Mae elbowed him slightly and fortunately it went unnoticed by the woman. "Yeah."

"Oh, wow. Hi. I'm sorry, I'm rude. I'm Sam and this is Mae. We just moved in up the block. " He draped an arm over her shoulder, hoping that they looked more like a couple, rather than just two random strangers approaching this woman on her own. He was a little surprised when she put her arm around his waist in return.

They both held out a hand which she shook. "Oh, hey, I'm Monica."

"Monica." Sam repeated and of course they both tried to recall if it Monica was one of the names on either of their lists.

"This is Rosie."

"Rosie." He repeated before turning to the baby. "Hi, Rosie."

"She really is adorable." Mae added with a reassuring smile.

"Yeah, so welcome to the neighborhood."

"Thank you. She's such a good baby."

"I know, I mean, she never cries. She just stares at everybody. Sometimes she looks at you and I swear it's – it's like she's reading your mind."

"What about you, Monica? Have you lived here long?" Sam asked.

"Uh, my husband and I, we bought our place just before Rosie was born."

"How old is Rosie?"

"She's six months today. It's big, right? Growing like a weed."

"Oh wow. They don't stay little for long, do they?"

"Do the two of you have kids?"

Before Mae could offer up any kind of answer, Sam spoke up. "Monica..."

"Yeah?"

"Just, uh, just take care of yourself, okay?"

"Yeah, you too, Sam. Mae. We'll see you around both around."

"Yeah, definitely."

* * *

><p>AN- Wilsall is a tiny town in Montana where Mae lives...just in case I forgot to mention that before! Thanks for reading!


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

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><p>"Hey, you wanna come get us?" Mae was a bit abrupt, not even exchanging the barest of pleasantries before moving on to business.<p>

"Listen, just because you had two of you when I just—"

"Shut up dude. We know who the demon is going after some come get us."

"Wait, how do you know."

"You're not gonna like it."

"Great."

"Sam had a vision."

"Another one?"

"Yeah and now we're stalking that family but since this was a research trip, we've only got minimal supplies and no plan so unless you want us to hoof it back to the motel…"

"Yeah. Is he okay?" Mae was quiet just a little too long for Dean's comfort. "Is he?"

"Physically yeah but it's…weird, okay? And concerning and I don't know if he's really alright but maybe this saves this family and maybe that's enough. So, yeah, I don't know how okay he is or not but he's okay."

"That was a little crazy sounding Maes. Are you okay?"

She sighed. "I'm fine, just a little….I don't know. I just want this to be over, okay? So come get us and we'll put an end to this thing once and for all."

"Good enough for me."

* * *

><p>She imagined that the speed with which he came to them was even quicker than it appeared, only because of the look on his face when she and Sam got in. He didn't ask again how either of them were at that point because ultimately it didn't matter. Even if things were terrible, there wasn't anything Dean could do to stop it at this point.<p>

So, he called his dad and the three of them made their way back to the motel. It wasn't very long before John showed up and Sam told them what had happened. Dean was a bit more familiar with the visions and with trusting them and his brother but their dad needed more. He'd poured himself a cup of coffee before taking a seat on one of the beds.

He'd pat the space beside him, trying to encourage Mae to sit next to him but she only silently shook her head and stood cross armed in the kitchenette area. If he had to guess, Dean would have thought she was looking over his brother. He liked that idea.

Sam sat at one of the chairs at the table, pained expression on his face that he tried to rub away as he explained the visions to his very skeptical father. Having been with him all day, Mae was getting more worried about the young man.

"A vision?"

"Yes. I saw the demon burning a woman on the ceiling."

Mae moved over to the sink, pouring a glass of water that she set down for Sam. She knew it wasn't going to fix anything but it might give him a bit of a distraction.

John still sounded unconvinced. "Alright, and you think it's going to happen to this woman you met because...?"

"Because these things happen exactly the way I see them."

Dean stood, walking behind Sam and joining Mae while he got another cup of coffee. "It started out as nightmares, and then he started having them while he was awake."

"Yeah. It's like - I don't know, it's like the closer I get to anything involving the demon the stronger the visions get.

John tuned his attention more towards Dean. "Alright, when were you gonna tell me about this?"

The three looked back at him. Dean spoke up first. "We didn't know what it meant."

"Alright, something like this start happening to your brother you pick up the phone and you call me."

Now Dean turned back, putting his mug down on the counter, a little disbelieving and more than a little angry at the order. "Call you?" he scoffed, "Are you kidding me? Dad, I called you from Lawrence, alright? Sam called you when I was dying. I mean, getting you on the phone – I got a better chance of winning the lottery."

There was tensions on all sides of this and to his credit, Dean stood his ground but didn't really start yelling, like Sam might have. All the same, Mae put a hand on Sam's shoulder, in part to keep him in his place and in part to offer a little bit of support and she squeezed the tense muscles there.

Sam covered her hand but didn't remove it from his shoulder. Instead he squeezed back. He didn't want to be fussed over but he found her presence oddly comforting.

"You're right. Although I'm not real crazy about this new tone of yours, you're right. I'm sorry."

It was a rare apology and enough for all of them to stand down. Sam started speaking again and Dean went back to the counter. Out of sight of either John or Sam, Mae reached over and grabbed Dean's hand, squeezing his hand too.

"Look, guys, visions or no visions the fact is that we know the demon is coming tonight. And this family is going to go through the same hell that we went through."

"No, they're not. No one is... ever again."

Sam's phone rang, which was kind of strange because the majority of people who could be calling him were in the room. He picked up. "Hello?"

He paused, confused. "Who is this?"

As he listened to whomever was calling, Mae felt a distinct chill curl around her spine and she took a step back and instinctively slid a little closer to Dean as well. He wasn't sure if she wanted him to put his arm over her shoulders and draw her into a protective embrace but he got the distinct impression that she would try to get out of it. Instead, he just eased a little closer.

"Meg." Sam said.

They'd seen her hit the pavement. The woman was supposed to be dead, not calling Sam up. John stood as Sam continued. "Last time I saw you, you fell out of a window." He paused to listen before responding. "Just your feelings? That was a seven story drop."

Sam paused and looked over to his father who was moving closer. "My Dad. I don't know where my Dad is."

It sounded like a terrible lie and even had they not been in the room ,both Mae and Dean would have known it was a lie. John didn't seem to care, he just held his hand out expectantly until Sam handed over the phone. John walked to the other side of the room.

"This is John."

He listened to whatever Meg was saying until he stopped his movement.

"I'm here."

John's expression turned to what one might call fear if it wasn't on John's face, Mae thought. She had a difficult time believing that anything Meg might say would genuinely scare the man.

"Caleb?"

Well that wasn't good. Whether Meg was with Caleb or just knew about their old friend, it was a terrible turn of events and it made all three of the younger hunters feel a similar sense of dread.

"Caleb. You listen to me. He's got nothing to do with anything. You let him go."

Another pause from John as he listened. "I don't know what you're talking about." He listened again. "Caleb...Caleb!"

He turned back to the kids, pissed off and worried all at the same time. "I'm gonna kill you, you know that?" Me said to Meg

John started to pace again, angrier now but then as Meg said whatever she was saying to him, he seemed more defeated. He sighed. " Okay." He finally said

"I said okay." He repeated at Meg's prodding. "I'll bring you the Colt."

They were stunned, to say the least. After everything they had done to get their hands on that damn gun, John was just going to hand over the Colt to the girl who'd tried to kill them once and clearly wasn't entirely human since she should have been dead too.

"It's gonna take me about a day's drive to get there." A small pause. "That's impossible. I can't get there in time, and I can't just carry a gun on a plane."

John closed his eyes in frustration and anger before he hung up moments later.

John hangs up the phone.

* * *

><p>They had their assignment; Mae and Dean were heading to an antique store in town, hoping that they could find an antique Colt that could pass. Sam and John were putting together the supplies they would both need while Sam filled his Dad in on everything else they knew about Meg.<p>

"I've never seen your dad like that before."

Dean didn't say anything but she watched his jaw work and since he was trying to put on a brave front, it made his concern all the more obvious.

"You okay?" she asked in a softer voice.

"I'm—I don't know Mae."

She reached over, placing a hand on his knee. Dean glanced over at her. He wished that having her there felt more reassuring. Actually, he felt a little more reassured by her presence but that feeling was outweighed by his worry for his father, his brother , and her as well.

"It's…" She was going to tell him that it was going to be okay but she wasn't sure that it was or that she could say it convincingly. "We'll get through this." She said instead.

"Meg is going after everyone who's ever helped us. Anyone we loved. And I don't see how that doesn't mean you too."

That had thrown her off. He wasn't wrong but it hadn't occurred to her that Meg could come find her to kill her as well, simply as a way to torment and manipulate the Winchesters. "I can take her. Besides, I know what she looks like and I'm ready for her."

Dean cleared his throat. "I'm having second thoughts about you doing this with us."

"Dude…I'm…I was raised to do this, same as you and Sam. I'm not Jess. Or your mom. I've got something that Pastor Jim and Caleb didn't have which is that I know that I could be a target. And I know this demon could kill me just as easily but—it's had a couple of chances now and didn't."

"Mae—"

"We're stronger together, right? " She pinned him with a determined stare.

He grabbed her hand off his leg and pressed a kiss to the back it, squeezing a little tighter than necessary. "I love you Mae."

Again, she felt a little blindsided by the thoughts running through his head that he was telling her. "Oh my God… this…this isn't the time for that."

"I need to tell you."

She knew he loved her and she loved him but she was certain that they weren't at a free exchange and expression of that. It made her uncomfortable. "Then tell me after, okay? For Christ sake, tell me after sex or in the middle of sex like a normal person."

He scoffed. "Are you serious?"

"Yes, I'm serious. It is not acceptable for you to say that outside out being naked and sweaty. This is just a job. We do the job and then we do the next one. Let's just do that."

"You are seriously a weird chick."

"I'm just saying that the last time we had to run an errand together, you got laid. This time you got all… touchy feely."

"Yeah, yours was more fun."

Still, she undid her seat belt and slid next to him so she could rest her head on his shoulder. It wasn't the words but he knew that she meant the same thing.

* * *

><p>John and Sam were at the meeting place, beside the railroad tracks, loading up John's weapon locker when Mae and Dean pulled up. They both got out as John approached them. "Did you get it?"<p>

Dean took out a brown paper bag from his jacket as he walked over to John and Sam. He handed it to his father and John took the fake Colt out of the bag.

"You know this is a trap, don't you? That's why Meg wants you to come alone."

"I can handle her. I got a whole arsenal loaded – holy water, Mandaic amulets..." His reasoning was pretty similar to Mae's and it was just as disconcerting.

"Dad..."

"What?"

"Promise me something?"

"What's that?"

"This thing goes south, just get the hell out. Don't get yourself killed, alright? You're no good to us dead."

"Same goes for you. Alright, listen to me." John took the real Colt out of his jacket pocket. "They made the bullets special for this Colt. There's only four of them left. Without them, this gun is useless. You make every shot count."

"Yes, Sir." Sam said.

"I've been waiting a long time for this fight. Now it's here, and I'm not gonna be in it. It's up to you kids now. It's your fight, you finish this. You finish what I started. You understand?"

Sam nodded but Dean didn't exactly want to give that commitment, knowing what his father was implying. John handed Dean the real gun and he tucked it safely in his jacket pocket.

"We'll see you soon, Dad."

John tried to reassure Dean with a smile and a nod. Then he put his hand on Sam's shoulder.

"Take care, John."

It should have been creepy but when he smiled and gave her a little wink in return, it was actually somewhat encouraging. "I'll see you later."

He turned away, got in his truck and drove off before Dean could speak again. "Later."

* * *

><p>AN- Believe it or not, we're nearing the end of this particular part! There's still some surprises between now and the where this part of my series stops (sort of between the first and second episode of the second season) so my question is, do you want to read the next part of the series? It takes place during season 2 and 3. I have a lot of the original material written...shifting it into the existing episodes takes a little more time but if you guys are enjoying it, I'll keep it up! Thanks for reading!


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

* * *

><p>The three hunters sat in the Impala, parked across the street from Monica's house, watching and waiting for the demon to make an appearance. There was a strange mix of boredom and nervous anticipation in the air.<p>

"Maybe we can tell them there's a gas leak. Might get them out of the house for a few hours." Sam offered.

"Yeah, and how many times has that actually worked for us?"

"Yeah." He thought on it. "Could always tell them the truth."

The other two hunters just looked him before giving a dismissal in unison.

"I know. I know, I know. It's just – with what's coming for these people..."

"Sam, we only got one move, and you know it, alright? We got to wait for that demon to show itself, and then... we get it before it gets them."

"We've got strength in numbers and this family has us. We're not going to let the same thing happen here." Mae offered up the comment because while she didn't have the same experience they boys did, she knew that it was possible that experience was making them less than objective on this issue. If they were lucky, that would work in their favor. If they weren't, things could turn south.

Sam sighed a little. "I wonder how Dad's doing?"

"I'd feel a lot better if we were there backing him up."

"I'd feel a lot better if he were here backing us up."

There wasn't much more to say as the hours ticked by all too slowly. The family sat down to dinner, watched a little TV and finally settled in for the night. They watched the husband close the downstairs curtains. "This is weird."

"What?" Dean asked.

"After all these years, we're finally here. It doesn't seem real."

"We just got to keep our heads and do our job, like always." He was saying all the right things but his face, his eyes told a different story. As much as she was trying to distance herself from this whole situation, she couldn't help but want to comfort him. Or give him something that made him more passionate about the fight. Maybe, she thought, she was hoping that if he mustered up the same enthusiasm Sam had, she could follow suit. Frankly, she understood how Dean was feeling more than she did Sam. She understood Dean.

"Yeah, but this isn't like always."

"True."

"Dean, uh... I want to thank you."

"For what?"

"For everything. You've always had my back, you know? Even when I couldn't count on anyone, I could always count on you. And now... I don't know. I just wanted to let you know. Just in case."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Are you kidding me?"

There were a lot of times when she didn't want to interrupt the boys and this was one of those times when she was torn between reminding Dean that he'd offered up a similar sentiment and she'd shut him down in kind, for probably the same reasons. Instead, she kept quiet a bit longer.

"What?"

"Don't say just in case something happens to you. I don't want to hear that freakin' speech, man. Nobody's dying tonight. Not us, not that family, nobody... Except that demon. That evil son of a bitch isn't getting any older than tonight, you understand me?"

She leaned forward and whispered in his right ear, just loud enough for him to hear. "See? Not everyone wants heartfelt emotional vomit. Doesn't mean all that stuff isn't true."

It wasn't the 'I love you too' he was hoping for, expecially considering the fact that he'd already showed his hand. Maybe if she were any other woman, he would have worried more about it. Fact of the matter was, he knew she loved him. He knew that she'd do for him the exact same thing he'd do for her to make her happy or save her life. He found that he didn't need the words. He wanted them but her not saying them aloud didn't signal to him that she didn't love him. This wasn't exactly the time or the place he wanted to hear them either.

Instead, they fell back into a reflective silence. He only let it last about ten minutes before he took out his phone and called his dad. It was dark but Mae kept her focus, perhaps a little too much on Dean. She knew she was a little too tuned into Dean's emotions and reactions right then. Sam's too but her concern for Dean was startling to even her. Once, twice, and finally three times he dialed the number before he hung up. "Dad's not answering."

It bothered her a little that she knew, just by the angle of his head that he was distinctly trying not to think up worse case scenarios. It wasn't the time or the place to let those things run through his mind but she knew those worrying thoughts hovered just at the edge of his brain.

"Maybe Meg was late. Maybe cell reception's bad."

"Yeah, well..."

They turned their attention back to the house. Unexpectedly, the radio, which had been off, started to crackle with static, interference and indistinct voices.

"Dean, wait." Sam turned the dial. "Listen."

All of the stations were the same, the same noise and interference. The wind started to pick up, scattering leaves haphazardly along the pavement before the lights started to flicker franticly. That made the adrenaline pick up for all of them. Dean looked at Sam.

"It's coming."

They jumped out of the car without hesitation and ran up to the house. At the front door, Dean leaned down to pick the lock in no time. He held the door open for Sam and Mae before he quietly closed it.

Sam walked a little further into the house, trying to gauge where things might be, where they needed to go next. It was an unfamiliar layout so they needed to get their bearings before they charged head long into something and they were all on high alert. Mae made her way past Sam quietly. However, he attention was drawn back and away from the stairs when she heard the smash of something. At first, she worried that one of the boys had carelessly knocked something over.

Unfortunately, the man who screamed 'Get out of my house' meant that they weren't completely getting away with their entrance into the house. But just as quickly as they'd been surprised by the man, Dean had him pinned up against the wall with the bat.

"Mr. Holt, please!" Sam tried to calm him.

"Be quiet and listen to me. Be quiet and listen to me. We're trying to help you, okay?"

"We're not here to hurt you or your family." Mae added.

Monica called down from upstairs. "Charlie, is everything okay down there?"

"Monica, get the baby!" Charlie yelled back.

"Don't go in the nursery!" Sam warned before he took off, making his way upstairs.

"You stay away from her!"

Charlie tried to break away from Dean but instead of trying to reason with him again, Dean hit him, knocking him out with one blow. He lifted the other man up and over his shoulder.

"Mae, come here. Stay out here with him." Dean ordered.

She was a bit taken aback but she still followed him outside. "Dean—"

"I said stay and keep and keep an eye on him."

He knew he might pay for ordering her like that but he knew he was right just as much as he wanted to keep her out of that house and away from the demon. Since it didn't tend to go after men, he figured Mae was safer out there.

Back in the house, Monica had gone into the nursery where she found a man standing at her baby's crib. Suddenly, she was pinned against the wall and was moving up towards the ceiling when Sam burst in. He only hesitated for a moment before the demon flashed a pair of yellow eyes at him. He shot and had demon not vanished. Monica dropped back down to the ground. "Where the hell did it go?"

"My baby! Rosie!"

Sam helped Monica to her feet and tried to get over to the baby. "Hey, no."

Dean burst in, running right past Sam. There was no time for questions or anything else once he made his assessment of the situation. "Get her out of here! I got it!"

Sam pulled Monica out of the room while Dean gently grabbed Rosie out of her crib. Monica screamed for her baby. "Dean's got her!" Sam reassured.

And he did. He pulled the baby out of the crib only moments before it burst into flames.

From outside the house, those minutes ticked by like hours and even after Charlie Holt came to, she threatened to knock him right back out. He wouldn't have taken her seriously if he hadn't found the redhead to be unexpectedly strong and more than able to hold him in place. It wasn't until the nursery window exploded in flames that she was willing to say to hell with her 'assignment' and go in after the boys.

She was relieved when Sam and Monica came out the front door with Dean right behind them, holding Rosie.

She let him go, knowing that seeing his family safe and sound would likely clam him down. "You get away from my family!" he yelled.

"No, Charlie, don't!" Monica corrected. "They saved us! They saved us."

She turned to Dean who handed her the infant before she turned into her husband's arms. "Thank you." She said.

Sam frowned, turning to look at the house. He'd tried to kill the demon, had been so certain that his shot would do just that. However, to his surprise, as he looked up at the flaming window, he saw that same shadowy figure looking down at them. "It's still in there."

Reason left the young man and he lunged toward the house only to be stopped by his brother who shoved him back. "Sam, no!"

"Dean, let me go! It's still in there!"

"It's burning to the ground! It's suicide!"

"I don't care!"

"I do!"

"Guys, stop!" Mae yelled, pointing out that the demon was gone again.

* * *

><p>Back at the motel, there was way more frustration and blanket anger than perhaps any other time the three of them had been together without Jon. Dean paced back and forth as he tried to call their dad once again.<p>

Mae had mostly gotten over Dean's strange treatment of her back at the house. There wasn't really time to be pissed off once the boys had told her what happened inside. Instead, she sat on one of the beds, legs extended and back against the headboard. She felt needlessly tired, mostly because her system had been primed for a fight that didn't come. Rather than that energy turn into the edgy restlessness that Dean seemed to show, she took a few moments for herself, to re-center and try to figure out what this had all been about. Sam sat on the other bed, just sat and stared at the floor.

"Come on, Dad. Answer your phone, damn it." He stopped pacing. "Something's wrong. You hear me? Something's happened."

"If you had just let me go in there, I could have ended all this." There was something disturbingly detached about his tone but getting involved in whatever the boys were going to argue about was not worth the stress, Mae decided.

"Sam, the only thing you would have ended was your life."

"You don't know that."

"So, what? You're just willing to sacrifice yourself, is that it?"

" Yeah. Yeah, you're damn right I am."

"Yeah, well, that's not going to happen – not as long as I'm around."

"What the hell are you talking about, Dean? We've been searching for this demon our whole lives. It's the only thing we've ever cared about."

"Sam, I want to waste it. I do, okay? But it's not worth dying over."

"What?"

"I mean it. If hunting this demon means you getting yourself killed - then I hope we never find the damn thing. Right Mae?"

"I—I am not—c'mon, of course it isn't."

"Really? That thing killed your husband. That thing killed Jess. That thing killed Mom.

She shouldn't have been surprised that Dean or maybe even John told him. It wasn't a secret but having him throw it in the argument made her uncomfortable nonetheless. It made her worry about what else he might now. But she didn't have a chance to volley anything back as Dean spoke up first.

"You said it yourself once – that no matter what we do, they're gone. And they're never coming back."

Sam grabbed Dean and slammed him up against the wall, pinning him there. " Don't you say that! Don't you... not after all this, don't you say that. You wouldn't say that if Mae were dead."

Mae sprung to her feet when Sam shoved him up against the wall. Sure the boys fought, they yelled, they rough housed on rare occasion, they might even throw a punch but there was never this sort of raw violence. It scared her a bit.

"Sam, look... The four of us, that's all we have. And that's all I have." They were both emotional, close to tears. "Sometimes I feel like I'm barely holding it together, man." Sam let him go and pat the front of Dean's shirt. "Without you…Mae… Dad..."

He turned away from his brother. "Dad. He should have called by now. Try him again."

Dean did so. This time, he got an answer but it wasn't his dad. "Where is he?"

Mae wasn't sure if he got a good answer because he hung up his phone without much more conversation. "They've got Dad."

"Meg?" Dean nodded, "What'd she say?"

"I just told you, Sammy." He was noticeably upset and not particularly able to pull it together all the way, "Okay. Okay."

Dean grabbed the Colt, tucking it into the back of his jeans.

"What are you doing, Dean?"

Now he grabbed his duffle bag. "We got to go."

"Why?"

He rushed to put his jacket on. "Because the demon knows we're in Salvation, alright. It knows we got the Colt. It's got Dad – it's probably coming for us next."

"Good. We've still got three bullets left. Let it come."

"Listed, tough guy, we're not ready, okay? We don't know how many of them are out there. Now, we're no good to anybody dead. We're leaving... now!"

Sam knew his brother was at the point where arguing with him wasn't going to do any good and he wasn't likely to say him in any way. Sam gathered up the rest of their things as quickly as possible. Mae however stepped up to him. She wasn't planning on fighting him. "What?" He asked, prepared for that fight.

"Listen, we need you to keep your head."

"I am. I swear, I am but this is the right choice."

"I'm not arguing that."

"Then what?"

She took a breath. "I—you know I feel like there's something I should say or do to make you feel better but I don't know what that is. I—I just kind of suck at that part of things and I really wanna be able to but, well I guess we're both going to have to settle for my half assed attempt."

It made him smile, just a little. A tiny reprieve from the urgency and panic he was feeling in the moment. He leaned in to press a sweet kiss to her mouth. "You know, that was pretty good baby. I know you don't want me to say it but uh… well, I guess I'm just glad you're with me."

"Me too."

* * *

><p>They were quick in getting everything out of the motel room, leaving it as pristine as it was when they arrived. He wasn't exactly keeping his anxieties under wrap as he sped off and she found herself worrying a bit more against him whenever he took a corner too fast.<p>

"I'm telling you, Dean, we could have taken him."

"What we need is a plan. Now, they're probably keeping Dad alive, we just gotta figure out where. They're gonna wanna trade him for the gun." Sam shook his head. "What?"

"Dean, if that were true, why didn't Meg mention a trade? Dad, he might be..."

"Don't!" Dean scolded.

"Look, I don't want to believe it any more than you. But if he is, all the more reason to kill this damn thing. We still have the Colt. We can still finish the job."

"Screw the job, Sam!"

"Dean, I'm just trying to do what he would want. He would want us to keep going."

"Quit talking about him like he's dead already. Listen to me, everything stops until we get him back, you understand me? Everything."

Sam paused to think. "So how do we find him?"

"Maybe we go to Lincoln. Start at the warehouse where he was taken."

"Come on, Dean, you really think these demons are going to leave a trail?"

"You're right. We need help. You're not gonna like it." He said, catching Mae's eyes in the rearview mirror.

* * *

><p>They drove through the night, rolling into Sioux Falls early in the morning. Dean wasn't exactly right; she wasn't exactly wild about going home but she wasn't fighting it and she wasn't trying to figure out a way to get out of it. They were dealing with a demon and there wasn't anyone else she'd have them go to for help.<p>

Good or bad, the place looked the same. There might have been more junk but it was hard to tell. The Rottweiler was new but reminded her a bit of the one they'd had when she was younger. It was on a chain but lay lazily on the hood of the tow truck. The dog didn't bother them when they got out of the car but Mae stopped.

She found her breath stick in her throat a bit. It wasn't nerves, she told herself. Actually, she though it was more embarrassment than anything. She'd had some fights with Bobby that could only be summed up as embarrassing.

"You good?"

Sam was already headed towards the house but Dean stopped when he looked over at Mae. She looked a bit like a dear caught in the head lights. "I'll have to get back to you. Sweetie."

"You can stay out here."

She turned to him rather sharp eyed. "Dude, you already put me outside like a bad dog. I'm not sitting in the car waiting for you to finish up with my uncle. I'm an adult and I can deal with this. I mean, Jesus, I can be in a room with you and your dad, in all my awkward glory. I can deal with this so just…back off."

He surprised a grin because he found her insanely cute when she was flustered like that. Sam had already knocked and Bobby had answered by the time she and Dean were walking up to the door. Yep, she thought, awkward and weird when she saw Bobby on the porch.

* * *

><p>AN- Okay, I'll admit, I'm being just a tad evil with another shorter chapter but this time it's because I really love the upcoming chapter and didn't want to combine it with this one.


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

* * *

><p>Bobby was mostly the same. The house was mostly the same. Just a bit shabbier on both fronts. That was somehow comforting. He greeted both boys as if there wasn't some huge issue between any of them. Only that it had been a while since they'd seen each other. She supposed that the boys had some trepidation about coming to Bobby for help. After all, John had not ended things on particularly good terms. Of course, most of that had to with her. She wasn't sure if she should expect him to feel as awkward as she did but he embraced her nonetheless.<p>

"You look good Mae."

"Thanks Bobby."

"So I gotta admit I'm pretty surprised to see you kids here, all together again."

"Yeah well…it's a long story and I'm not sure that we have the time to get into the weeds on this one right now. So, I'll cut to the chase here; we're hunting a demon and it's got John."

"We need help on this one." Dean added.

"C'mon in."

Mae hesitated again until Dean's hand pressed to the small of her back. He didn't push or force her forward. It was more about comfort but it wasn't until his fingers eased under the hem of her shirt to touch bare skin that she was jostled into movement. She passed an assessing glance over to Dean who only gave her a little wink as he closed the door.

She wasn't entirely sure if he was doing it intentionally. If he wasn't, it was exceptionally well timed. But if that gesture was something he thought he planned, well, he knew her better than she thought or knew the right level of support and embarrassment she needed in that moment. The thought made her stomach tremble a little because she found herself perpetually unprepared for the depth of this relationship.

The three walked in and settled in to the once familiar house, although it was rather awkward at first. There were more books, stacked pretty much everywhere. Growing up, the house had always been a library of paranormal reference materials but back then, it was a little neater. Mae understood it, at least a little but all the same, it looked a little like a backwards slide into the darker side of the life. The whole place told her that he probably didn't have very many guests let alone anyone who would care about the state of things.

Her mind wandered back to Dean as she watched him mill a bit while Bobby stepped out of the room. Her emotions were pulling her in directions she was uncomfortable with at the moment. Between worrying about Dean and Sam, adding in this sudden concern for her uncle left her with far less focus than she was comfortable on a job.

Once again, she found herself so aware that now wasn't the time for any of this to come up. This wasn't a time or place or even life really to have those thoughts and feelings. It left her quite unfocused and a rather frightened. Perhaps it was a case of over simulation. The only good thing was it all somehow helped divorce her from having to deal with her personal connection to it.

Mae lingered in the doorway as Dean followed Bobby and Sam started browsing over the books. Dean had given him a bit more background and Bobby went to a specific stack, grabbed a large book and brought it back to Sam who sat down at the messy desk to read. The older man caught her eyes roaming over the room and undoubtable saw the judgment implicit in the look. He held her gaze as if daring or perhaps expecting her to proffer her opinion. But she remained quiet because there wasn't really anything to be done about it.

He moved once more to retrieve something else that the kids could only guess at. When he returned moments later, he was carrying two round silver flasks with crosses on them and hands one to Dean.

"Here you go."

"What is this – holy water?"

"That one is." He held out the other flask. "This is whiskey."

He took a swig of whiskey and handed it to Dean, who also took a drink. "Bobby, thanks. Thanks for everything. To tell you the truth, I wasn't sure we should come."

Her eyes flicked back up to Dean. At no point in time did he reveal that little tidbit. There had, at the time, been no arguing with him on what to do next since he was in that very single minded mood. Not that she blamed him but she found the small confession to be refreshing and reassuring.

"Nonsense, your Daddy needs help."

"Well, yeah, but last time we saw you, I mean, you did threaten to blast him full of buckshot. Cocked the shotgun and everything."

If Dean or Bobby looked back at her Mae didn't know because she refused to meet either possible gaze. While her eyes focused on the imaginary but obviously fascinating thing in the corner. She knew that her face burned a hot red, not because she felt particularly embarrassed by the long past though torrid history but because she hadn't realized that something more had gone down between John and Bobby.

Mae really wasn't certain what he knew, what John or Dean had told him but it seemed a bit like her uncle had sided with her. That hadn't actually occurred to her before. After all, it took years before she even discussed it with another person. While she would have liked Dean to have a little more faith in her at the time, she knew she didn't exactly give him the chance but here was the only blood relation she had who couldn't possibly have known everything, threaten John.

"Yeah, well, what can I say? John just has that effect on people."

He looked over to the young woman he was desperately, almost distressingly in love with. It would have been easy to blame her for everything that had happened but it wasn't something he wanted to do any longer. It was however getting a little easier to shift some of that blame and responsibility to himself and to his dad. "Yeah, I guess he does."

"None of that matters now. All that matters is that you get him back."

Sam spoke up. "Bobby, this book... I've never seen anything like it."

Bobby came over and sat on the corner of the desk. "Key of Solomon? It's the real deal, alright."

Dean didn't join them right away. Instead, he stepped beside Mae again. "You okay?" He asked quietly, running his hand firmly from her shoulder down her arm.

There was something a little shaky behind her eyes when she looked back at him but she nodded all the same. "I'm good. It's just weird, you know?"

"You'll spaz if I kiss you right now, right?"

Her lips twisted just a bit as she cast her downwards. "I don't know but that's not happening right now."

He certainly thought about doing it just to get her to blush deeper, maybe loosen up a bit. The reason he only squeezed her hand was he didn't know if it the move would backfire on him and there was too much going on right now to risk it.

The pair were brought out of their momentary aside by Bobby and Sam. "And these, uh, these protective circles. They really work?"

"Hell, yeah. You get a demon in - they're trapped. Powerless. It's like a Satanic roach motel.

"Man, knows his stuff."

"I'll tell you something else, too. This is some serious crap you kids stepped in."

"Oh, yeah? How's that?" Sam asked.

"Normal year, I hear of, say, three demonic possessions. Maybe four, tops."

"Yeah?"

"This year I hear of 27 so far. You get what I'm saying? More and more demons are walking among us – a lot more."

Mae felt that knowing twinge start in the base of her spine and start to creep up as her uncle spoke.

"Do you know why?"

"No, but I know it's something big. The storm's coming, and you boys, Mae, your Daddy – you are smack in the middle of it.

Outside, the dog started barking. "Rumsfeld." Bobby said, getting up to go to the window only to hear the dog silenced with a whine. "What is it?"

The dog was cone and only a broken chain remained. "Something's wrong."

Before anyone could say anything more, the door flew open, having been kicked open by Meg. Mae stepped back into the main room, joining the other hunters. She didn't even argue when Dean pushed in front of her because she didn't have a single thing on her to fight a demon. At least Dean had holy water Bobby had given him which he proceeded to pull out of his pocket.

"No more crap, okay?"

Dean charged towards her, unscrewing the flask but the diminutive blonde sent him flying across the room into a stack of books, seemingly knocking him out. Sam stepped in front of Bobby, shielding him.

"I want the Colt, Sam – the real Colt – right now."

Sam and Bobby both moved slowly across the room, meeting Mae, who Sam also shoved behind him as well. Meg followed. "We don't have it on us. We buried it."

"Didn't I say "no more crap"? I swear – after everything I heard about you Winchesters, I got to tell you, I'm a little underwhelmed. First Johnny tries to pawn off a fake gun, and then he leaves the real gun with you three chuckleheads. Lackluster, men. I mean, did you really think I wouldn't find you?"

Dean stepped up behind her. "Actually, we were counting on it."

Meg turned to look at him. Dean stared for a moment then his gaze moved up towards the ceiling where a huge Devil's Trap had been drawn. "Gotcha."

* * *

><p>They had exorcized Meg—or rather the demon that had possessed the young woman who'd once been Meg. No matter how often or fervently Mae tried to reassure herself and the boys, that this was just business, it very obviously wasn't. Any belief she had about that had been thrown out the window when she watched Dean react to the demon's baiting. She found him to be both frightening and pitiable in those moments.<p>

She knew that he was capable of violence; they all were but this wasn't something that came with the territory. There had been real hate in his eyes when he'd hit Meg. When he realized that it probably hurt the girl more than the demon, there was regret but all the same, it was unnerving for Mae to think of Dean that way.

Again, there wasn't time to rationalize or really consider it much. They needed to get moving, both to save John and avoided the delay of being questioned by the police over the dead girl in Bobby's house. He'd offered them whatever supplies would help them and they were on their way.

To Mae's surprise, Dean stopped, turned and looked back at her for a moment before he all but marched to the back of the Impala and grabbed her bags out of the trunk. She wasn't sure why at all. They didn't need the room and they weren't leaving their things at Bobby's.

"What are you doing?" She asked when he approached her. He put her messenger bag over her head, letting it drape over her shoulder and around her body. Dean pushed her other bag into her arms.

If he could have, he wouldn't have looked her in the eye because those soft dove grey eyes always got to him. This time he saw the confusion followed by the fire of her temper. "What the hell are you doing?" she repeated.

"You can't come with us."

"Excuse me?"

"You need—no, I need you to stay here."

"That's…I don't even know what that is. It's crazy. You don't need less help on this. You need more. You need an army."

Dean sighed. "Yeah, you're right but…just not you."

"I will smack some sense into you if I have to." She pushed the bag back towards him, "Don't be stupid. You need my help. You may not have needed it at any other point but you need it now."

Dean shook his head. "Mae, I am asking you, please, just listen to me and do this for me."

"Dean-"

"I know, okay? I know everything you're saying and you're not wrong. But… you can't go." His voice hitched just a bit and while Mae knew the past few days had been an emotional roller coaster but the way he was acting didn't make a lot of sense to her.

"I can't believe this. If you think I'm going to fall apart because I've been a little off, maybe a little too…ambivalent. Well, I'll give you that but I'm not going to fall apart, okay? I can do this as well as you or Sam."

"This is not me questioning your hunting abilities or your—your anything. You have no idea how much I trust you but you just can't go one this."

She shook her head. "This isn't some off the beaten path kind of hunt. This is _it_! This is why you and your brother are hunters, this is why your whole life is what it is. And it's a demon, Dean. Demons are pretty much my whole scene, you'd be stupid not to _beg_ me to come with you."

"I guarantee you I am probably being insanely stupid but believe me when I say this Red, I just need you to sit this one out."

Her mouth twisted in frustration. "You aren't my drill sergeant. You tell me why. Give me one good reason."

The wheels turned behind his eyes as he tried to give her the reason she ordered him to give. "Because this is about my family, not yours."

Dean expected her eyes to snap open with shock. Instead, the narrowed and he felt the heat building back up behind them. "Wrong. This isn't my family? That's the line you want to run with? After everything, I'm not family? After everything you yourself have said about to the contrary? Fuck that Dean."

"Figures you wouldn't buy that one."

Now her face relaxed a bit more, still with keenly arched brows. "Well? I'm waiting for an answer that doesn't just piss me off. Unless you think pissing me is going to get you what you want."

"Fine. You're right; You are family. You're… you're the woman I love. And this thing, it killed Jessica, it killed my mom and—and… I can't see that happen to you. I'm not losing you to this thing too. I can't—I just can't. So even if that's the stupidest reason I've ever come up with, I just need you to stay away from this."

It wasn't the best reason but it was a reason she understood. Dean was more sensitive than anyone gave him credit for, than he would ever admit but somehow this honest confession meant much more to her. Her eyes softened as she looked at him, so did her body language. "Yeah, it sounds stupid but I sort of get it. Kind of. But this has come up before and you know I'm not you Mom and I'm not Sam's girlfriend. I'm not an innocent girl who just happened to fall for some dumbass name Winchester by chance. This is what I do."

Dean shook his head. "Not this time. I don't care if you were the key to all of this. I don't care if you could snap your fingers and end all of this for good, I still wouldn't risk you. If anything happened to you, I don't know what I'd do."

"Go crazy, start hunting evil." She said with a quirky smile.

"Don't try and make a joke out of this, not this."

"You know I could just as easily be killed here, right? I mean we've already had one demon come find us here.

"I—We've gotta find Dad. Once we do, we can go after the demon but right now… Please, just do this for me.

As much as she had been scared by his reaction to Meg, she was moved by the desperation he displayed now. "I'm not a token or a bargaining piece."

"I'm not planning on using you as one. That doesn't mean you can't still be used against me. And just because I'm asking you now doesn't mean I won't knock you out and handcuff you to the bed."

Her eyebrow arched. Normally, she wouldn't have thought twice about the idle threat but something about him right then made her think it wasn't so idle. "I wouldn't try it if I were you."

"Mae…"

She sighed. "Damnit…stop looking at me like that."

They let the bag slide down between them as he took ahold of her hands. "Please, just do this for me. Please? After we find dad, I will do whatever you want when we get back if you just do this one thing for me."

Mae wasn't sure why he was so convinced this was the way to keep her safe or why it pissed her off so much. But she knew she wasn't going to win this fight and he probably would make good on his threat to clock her. "I can still call you stupid though right?"

"Had you stopped?"

Mae smirked but then she became somber again. "I have a bad feeling about this and you guys could really use my help. But, God help me, I'll stay here."

"Thank you."

"If you change your mind…"

"Yeah, I know where to find you."

"You're so stupid."

Dean hooked a finger under her chin, tilted her head up and pressed the most passionate kiss he could to her frowning little mouth. It was a kiss that was filled with all he was worth, all he could convey about his feeling for her as well as a healthy dose of hopelessness and panic. "I'll be back so soon you won't even have time to miss me, Red. I promise."

* * *

><p>Mae watched them drive off with a dreadful sense of anxiety about the whole thing. She raked her hands through her messy hair before she picked up her duffel bag and headed back inside through the front door, which was resting awkwardly off its hinges.<p>

Oddly enough, that didn't seem out of place. She however did. Bobby was cleaning up, making sure that the scene wasn't too strange or suspicious when the paramedics came. With any luck, he could be able to convince them that this poor girl just stumbled on to his property and he was trying to provide assistance. He looked up when Mae dropped her bag to the floor. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." She responded, a little doe-eyed.

"Thought you'd be off with the boys by now."

"Yeah, me too. I…Dean asked me to stay. I think I've gone soft here."

He raised his brow questioningly. "You let one or both of those boys talk you outta some hunt, I'd say yeah."

"Yeah," She sat down at the desk with an almost wistful sigh.

"Not to impose on your melancholy longing, but there is a dead girl here we've gotta deal with and I'm pretty sure it'll be easier to explain if you ain't seen."

She nodded. When the cops showed up, it would be better for there to be only one person to question and only one story to poke holes in. "Yeah, probably. Need a hand?"

"We're not that far out in the boonies that it takes forever for them to get here. Just take you gear and keep quiet a while."

* * *

><p>She felt more like a bit player in her own life at the moment. She certainly wasn't used to taking orders from anyone these days and she found herself doing that more in the past few days than she had in years. Bobby was one thing. He really was an experienced hunter who knew what he was talking about. What's more, she trusted him. No matter what, that hadn't ever changed. Now, her uncle on the other hand was not going to be over joyed to see her hunting again.<p>

But perhaps some of that would change too. It wasn't like she hadn't had ample opportunity to try something else, to live a normal life. Of all people, he should have understood exactly why she ended up where she had. Well, maybe not the part where she waiting for the paramedics and authorities to leave her childhood bedroom in her uncle's house. She hadn't really anticipated that.

Maybe it was because Bobby was as efficient as he was of because he had enough say with the locals but it didn't take as long as she expected for them to question Bobby and take that poor girl to the morgue. To be safe, she waited another half hour before she went down stairs. Her hands were tucked into her back pockets, posture quite tense and awkward.

"Hey so…" she genuinely had no idea what to say and she was certain that she couldn't feel any more out of place, "Everything…good?"

Bobby was rehanging the front door. "One situation's in hand. But you do realize that whatever you kids wandered into is some serious bad juju, right?"

She sighed as she sat on the edge of the desk. "Yeah, I'm beginning to get that. Can I ask you something?"

"Depends."

"No, it's nothing weird. Or maybe it is. I genuinely don't know."

"Then shoot."

She pursed her lips, trying to figure out the best way to ask her question and she was grateful that he was busying himself with the repair. "So…John thinks this demon they're hunting is the same one that that possessed me and Dan."

"That wasn't a question."

"Well…I mean is it? Do you know?"

"Sweetheart, I've got no clue. I didn't exactly have time to get on a first name basis with it, what with making sure you didn't die."

"Why do you think John's so sure then?"

"You've met the man right? Once he's convinced himself of somethin', that's it for him. But is that what's really bothering you? I mean do you really need to know what this demon is or what it's done to hunt it down?"

She shook her head. "It's not about the damn demon. I'd put it down just because it's a demon. I need to know if John is right."

"Why?"

"Because he also….the night of my accident, that thing I saw in that tree…John says that was the demon too. So…is the right? I don't exactly have a crystal clear memory of that night."

Bobby paused and turned around to look at her. "I wish I could tell you one way or another but I don't remember much about that part of that night either. I was preoccupied with more important things. Now why the hell are you lettin' John Winchester get you twisted up on this? It's not like you and him have a great history."

She blew out a breath. "Yeah well…you don't know the whole story on that. Although, in retrospect I don't seem to have great luck with I'm around the Winchesters."

He gave her an I told you so look but she only chuckled and smiled a bit mawkishly. "Okay, let's move off that because it seems like it'll just start a fight. One I'm pretty not up for. But for the record, John didn't…I mean I don't know why he didn't tell you this but he didn't force me or take advantage of me. Long story short, it was a really messed up spell."

"Really?"

Mae shrugged. "Like that's the weirdest thing you've heard."

"I guess."

"So…do you think John's just piecing things together because…he's kind of gotten lost in this whole hunt? Or could this demon really be doing this to us?"

"I don't know Mavis and I wish I had answers for you. Is that why you want to be a part of this fight?"

"I—well, I think maybe Sam wishes that were the case because then maybe I could convince Dean to feel the same way but I don't have that same thing in me. I mean I have that thing that makes you become this," she gestured around the room, "but I…"

"What?"

"Nothing," she shook her head, realizing that perhaps Bobby didn't want to know the rest of it.

"You think you're gonna shock me by telling me somethin' I can't see plain as day. You're in love with Dean."

The redhead blew out a little stream of breath. "I—clear as day?"

"Darlin', I don't know that there's ever been a time when the two of you weren't in love with each other. And you aren't exactly a team player if your heart isn't in it."

"You make it sound like it's a bad thing."

"That's you Mae. You're probably the only one who's afraid to admit it."

Mae bit her lip as she looked away. "It's pretty stupid thought. Falling in love with a hunter? It's not like I'm unaware of what this life is or what it does to someone. And… why the hell am I telling you this?"

Her uncle shrugged and turned back to the door. " Guess you needed to tell someone."

* * *

><p>AN- There's one more chapter left in this story! If you want more, stay tuned for Give Up the Ghost, the next installment in the Mae/Dean series.


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

* * *

><p>"You're getting on my nerves here Mavis."<p>

Hell, she was getting on her own nerves. An inescapable tightness filled her slim frame. She wanted to be doing something, not just waiting, not just biding her time, and certainly not being left to guess what was happening to her friends.

She was also getting mad with herself for letting Dean play on her emotions the way he did. She knew that his feelings were genuine and she knew that his protective nature was both endearing and maddening. It wasn't wrong. It was annoying as hell when it came to working with him. All the same, she agreed to his request and now she was left to bide her time in a place where she straddled the line of comfort and uneasiness.

"I have no idea what to do here."

"Work?"

Mae sighed but it was followed by a little smirk. "You know, even a few months ago, I wouldn't have come here."

Bobby looked up from his paper. "Meaning?"

"Meaning I would have…I don't know done something else. I…I guess I've…I'm a little less angry."

"You're still angry at me for want you to be a normal kid?"

"I—no, that wasn't really why I was mad. In retrospect, those times were pretty good. And it's not like I didn't try and it's not like I didn't want normal to feel normal. There was even maybe a whole year when I didn't take jobs on the side. But normal didn't exactly stick with me. I was mad because….because I felt like you couldn't accept me not being normal."

"That's crazy, girl. We're family. It doesn't matter if you're a hunter or not, not now any way, but you shouldn't have had to be one just because I am."

"Then why'd you take me in?"

His eyes studied her face. She'd managed to keep it mostly passive but her voice sounded a little too much like her little girl voice. She frowned just a bit, perhaps bracing for the worst. "Because, we're family and you didn't have anyone else. I thought about just letting the system take care of things and hope you'd get put with a good family but…I just couldn't."

"If you'd really wanted me to grow up normal…"

"I wanted you to be safe and there was too much out there that I couldn't chance back them."

"For the record, I'm glad that you're the one who raised me. I…" She felt herself chock up a little and unexpectedly.

"What the hell happened to you?"

Her brow furrowed. "What do you mean?"

"All this…self-reflection and introspection ain't really your thing."

"Part boredom, part…looking at the people and things in my life and—stop looking at me like I have two heads! Listen, Dean and I have been going through some things and a lot of stuff has come up with that so…I'm just…" she huffed and stood up. "You know the house looks like shit."

He chuckled a bit as she made her way back upstairs. The heart to heart wasn't unappreciated even if it were strange to see her like this. And as much as he'd hoped she'd pick a different life, he understood why she'd come back to it. Maybe she'd never had a shot at anything else having been raised the way she was and being exposed to the things she'd seen.

* * *

><p>She tried to remind herself that she wasn't as exposed as she felt and her uncle wasn't picking on her. It was unlike her to be as forthcoming as she was being, she knew that. She also knew that part of the reason she felt like she needed to get her feelings off her chest was because of Dean. It was so important to him to bring his family back together and she supposed that some of that had rubbed off on her.<p>

Mae realized that it wasn't all that difficult, aside from the discomfort about sharing her feelings and fears. She didn't need to build a bridge to reestablish a relationship with him. All she needed to do was walk across it. That didn't mean she didn't need a break from worry, confusion, and embarrassment. She took out her phone, frowning when she saw that there were no calls or messages from Dean. She wanted to call him but thought better of it, thinking it would be more of a distraction.

Going back to her old bedroom seemed depressing. It had fared better than the rest of the house but hadn't completely survived Bobby's redecorating scheme. Although, she was willing to admit that if she didn't see or hear from Dean, she was more interested in sleeping in the old twin bed rather than crashing on the couch. Instead, she found herself meandering around the upstairs rooms.

There was a small frown on her face as she stepped into one of the small, untied room. Mae still had a few, incredibly hazy memories of what the house once looked like when it was neat and tidy. She'd been very little back then and Bobby was still an inexperienced hunter. Very vague. With a mix of nostalgia and sorrow, she took in the peeling, discolored wall paper, the dust gathering books and the staid, musky smell. She had to remind herself that things hadn't changed _that_ much since she had been here last. 8 years.

Shaking those thoughts away, she continued inside. Her lips curled up in a small smile however as she took notice of what had once been warm wood. Books and other tools of the trade were of course gathered and stacked with an organization only Bobby understood along the small wooden bench and lid of the old boxy piano. As unobtrusively as she could, she set the books on the floor, lifted the cover and sat before the once well used keys.

Cool to the touch, warm to her mind, she tested the tone of one lone ivory bar before casting a hesitant glance to the door. Something about being in the room with what she considered a happy memory, reliving it even in the slightest to be somewhat of a violation of Bobby's privacy. He had shut himself off from most of the remembrances of the past, quite literally in some instances.

Bobby wasn't exactly giving her space or anything like that. He'd actually almost forgotten that she was there until he heard the slightly discordant tinkling of music from upstairs. Making his way upstairs, he paused, a bit dumbstruck, in the door to one of the spare bedrooms. For a moment, a very brief instance, Mae looked like her mother. That was a bittersweet remembrance for the older man but then she turned, her pale cheeks tinged crimson and brow fastened together with worry.

She frowned. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize you were… upstairs." A strange formality settled in her words and stumbling words as she stood, closing the lid and brushing her hands off on her jeans.

"That's alright."

The willowy young woman nodded, feeling oddly scrutinized. Having spent so much time with Dean again had brought some uncomfortable notions of family to light and while she would have rather ignored them, as she had for many years, they seemed dead set on being thrust directly into life. For Dean there was no question of where she should have stayed, what she should have done.

"It's pretty out of tune." Bobby continued. "No one's played in years but it was still nice to hear it again. You let those lessons go to seed."

She laughed. Piano lessons had not been her most favorite extracurricular activity back in the days that Bobby was trying to 'normalize' her. And more often than not, she only practiced under duress and supervision, despite having an aptitude for the piano. Had Bobby not devised his own little system to keep her from skipping the lessons, she would have done so all together. Today, however she knew that if she had been a bit cleverer and patient she could have forged the notes herself, even made up the little assignments Bobby had to sign off on.

But at 10 she had yet to work that out in her mind. "I'm pretty sure I wasn't paying attention."

"Yeah," he scoffed, "I noticed."

"Well that piano teacher smelled like mothballs anyway."

"Listen, if you wanna…talk about your feelings and all that…" he waved his hand dismissively, "I'll listen. Okay?"

"I'm…I'm good, I think. This is all just weird. I mean…I guess I don't even know what I mean. But all of this, this emotional stuff, is super uncomfortable and unfamiliar to me. What happened to good old fashion repression?"

Bobby smirked. "And this is all because you and Dean started shacking up again?"

"I wouldn't say shacking up."

"What would you call it?"

"Well not shacking up. It's not about that. I didn't anticipate ever being friends with Dean, let alone being close. But I'm pretty sure you don't want to hear about what me and Dean have been up to or how I feel about him."

"The two of you kids aren't the worst couple. Although, you have a pretty great track record of bein' idiots."

"Well, I like to stick to my talents."

"Mae…"

"Don't start on me. I don't know what Dean and I are doing. All I can tell you is it's not the worst thing we've done together. And I'm sorry for being…or not being…or…okay, I'm just sorry for not listiening or understanding that you had my best intentions."

"I hate to tell you but aside from the hunting part of your upbringing, you were kind of a normal teenager." There was something about it that made her smile. "And as long as you're happy…are you happy?"

"I'm…" she puffed her cheeks up before blowing it out in a huff. "I'm not unhappy. I don't know that happy is…realistic. I'm not unhappy and I'm think I'm doing the right thing. I hope that's enough.

"Well, I think it's probably more than most."

"So…do you think I should have gone with the guys?"

* * *

><p>In retrospect, Dean wished in addition to the Colt, he'd brought Mae. Sure, it was a risk to have her there but maybe, it would have been easier. Sam seemed a little worse for the wear and their dad was still down for the count. He thought about calling Mae but he wasn't sure what good it would do. They would be back at Bobby's soon enough, he thought. If they were lucky, they could stay here for a few hours…maybe the night and he'd see her in no time. He knew he should be less concerned about Mae but he couldn't get her off his mind.<p>

Dean walked back into the main room of the cabin they'd found where Sam was salting the windows. "How is he?" Sam asked.

"He just needed a little rest, that's all. How are you?"

"I'll survive." Sam turned back to Dean. "Hey, you don't think we were followed here, do you?"

"I don't know. I don't think so. I mean, we couldn't have found a more out-of-the-way place to hole up."

"Yeah." He looked at Dean. "Hey, uh... Dean, you, um... you saved my life back there."

"So, I guess you're glad I brought the gun, huh?" He joked.

"Man, I'm trying to thank you here."

"You're welcome."

Sam walked across the room.

"Hey, Sam?"

"Yeah?"

"You know that guy I shot? There was a person in there."

"You didn't have a choice, Dean."

"Yeah, I know, that's not what bothers me."

"Then what does?"

"Killing that guy, killing Meg. I didn't hesitate, I didn't even flinch. For you or Dad or Mae, the things I'm willing to do or kill, it's just, uh ... it scares me sometimes."

"It shouldn't. You did good." John had awoken at some point and he joined the boys now.

"You're not mad?"

"For what?"

"Using a bullet."

"Mad? I'm proud of you. You know, Sam and I, we can get pretty obsessed. But you – you watch out for this family. You always have."

"Thanks."

Out of nowhere, the wind picked up and the lights flickered. The hunters rushed over to the window. "It found us. It's here." John informed them.

"The demon?"

"Sam, lines of salt in front of every window, every door."

"I already did it."

"Well, check it, okay?"

"Okay." He didn't argue and went to check the doors and windows.

"Dean, you got the gun?" His father asked him.

"Yeah."

"Give it to me."

Dean took the Colt out of his jeans. "Dad, Sam tried to shoot the demon in Salvation. It disappeared."

"This is me. I won't miss. Now, the gun, hurry."

The younger man hesitated and looked down at the weapon.

Dean hesitates and looks down at the gun.

"Son, please."

Dean backed up a bit.

"Give me the gun. What are you doing, Dean?"

"He'd be furious."

"What?"

"That I wasted a bullet. He wouldn't be proud of me, he'd tear me a new one."

John just looked at Dean as he raised the Colt and took aim at him. "You're not my Dad."

"Dean, it's me."

"I know my Dad better than anyone. And you ain't him."

"What the hell's gotten into you?"

"I could ask you the same thing. Stay back."

Sam was more than a little confused when he came back to find Dean pointing the Colt at their father. "Dean? What the hell's going on?'

John answered. "Your brother's lost his mind."

"He's not Dad."

"What?"

"I think he's possessed. I think he's been possessed since we rescued him."

"Don't listen to him, Sammy."

"Dean, how do you know?"

Dean fought back tears. "He's ... he's different."

"You know, we don't have time for this. Sam, you wanna kill this demon, you've gotta trust me."

Sam was torn between his father and his brother. Knowing Dean though, he wouldn't turn on his father unless something was really wrong and something that Dean genuinely believed.

"Sam?"

Sam looked back and forth. "No. No" He took the side of his brother.

Their father just looked at the pair. "Fine. You're both so sure, go ahead. Kill me." John waited them out. Dean held the gun, pointed the gun, but shouldn't pull the trigger. "I thought so."

When John looked back up, his eyes were yellow. Sam lunged for him but both boys were thrown against the walls, causing Dean to drop the gun which the possessed John Winchester picked up. "What a pain in the ass this thing's been."

Sam's temper flared. "It's you, isn't it? We've been looking for you for a long time."

"Well, you found me."

"But the holy water?"

"You think something like that works on something like me?"

Sam fought against the demon force holding him against the wall but to no avail. "I'm gonna kill you!"

"Oh, that'd be a neat trick. In fact," the demon set the gun down on the table. "here. Make the gun float to you there, psychic boy."

And damned if he didn't try but nothing happened.

" Well, this is fun." He walked over to the window by Dean, "I could have killed you a hundred times today, but this... this is worth the wait."

Dean tried to free himself as well but wasn't able to free himself. The demon looked over at him with his father's face. " Your Dad – he's in here with me. Trapped inside his own meat suit. He says "hi", by the way. He's gonna tear you apart. He's gonna taste the iron in your blood."

"Let him go, or I swear to God –"

"What? What are you and God gonna do? You see, as far as I'm concerned, this is justice" he walked over to Dean. "You know that little exorcism of yours? That was my daughter."

"Who, Meg?"

"The one in the alley? That was my boy. You understand."

"You've got to be kidding me."

"What? You're the only one that can have a family? You destroyed my children. How would you feel if I killed your family?" He smiled at Dean. "Oh, that's right. I forgot. I did. Still, two wrongs don't make a right."

"You son of a bitch."

Sam chimed in. "I wanna know why. Why'd you do it?"

The demon turned to Sam. "You mean why did I kill Mommy and pretty, little Jess?"

"Yeah."

He turned back to Dean. "You know, I never told you this, but Sam was going to ask her to marry him. Been shopping for rings and everything. " The possessed John turned to Sam. "You want to know why? Because they got in the way."

"In the way of what?"

"My plans for you, Sammy. You... and all the children like you."

"Listen," Dean said, "you mind just getting this over with, huh? Cause I really can't stand the monologuing."

The demon approached him. "Funny, but that's all part of your M.O., isn't it? Masks all that nasty pain, masks the truth."

"Oh, yeah? What's that?"

"You know, you fight and you fight for this family, but the truth is they don't need you. Not like you need them. Sam – he's clearly John's favorite. Even when they fight, it's more concern than he's ever shown you."

"I bet you're real proud of your kids, too, huh? Oh wait, I forgot. I wasted 'em." Dean offered up a sour mile and the demon looked at him for a moment. Then he put his head down and when he looked back up, Dean screamed out in pain.

"Dean! No!"

The demon laughed a little. "Maybe I'll pay little Mae a visit. She did always have a bit of a crush on John growing up. You know that right? What do you wanna bet that I could get her to beg for it? Huh? Sure it'd be all the more fun if I made you watch daddy fuck that little girlfriend of yours before he ripped the flesh from her bones."

"Ha. You think she wouldn't know you weren't dad? And you think she would send you right back to hell."

"Oh she didn't the first time I met her. Sweet little thing. Mmm…that is a big regret, not getting a little bit of that innocent young girl back then. What do you wanna bet your dear old dad had at least a few fantasies about that pert little body when she was 15?"

"You think that means somethin'?"

"Maybe not but maybe you might care that the first time she ran into me, I killed that little whelp of your growing inside her."

He scoffed, trying to cover that initial pang of hurt. He knew that there was every likelihood that the demon was lying to him just to toy with him. But at the same time, he had suspected there was still something she wasn't telling him. It wasn't this though. "Yeah right."

"You could ask her yourself if I weren't gonna make dear old Dad kill you here and now. But I'll tell you, if I knew your little family would end up being this annoying, I would have made you watch me rip it out of her."

Dean started to bleed heavily from his chest. Once again, Sam struggled to free himself from the invisible force.

"Dad! Dad, don't you let it kill me!" Dean pleaded.

Those peals were only fodder for the demon and he only turned up the pain for the young man.

"Dean! No!"

Dean bled more and all Sam could do was fight in vain to free himself. "Dad, please." He said before he passed out.

"Dean!"

John, the real John, whispered. "Stop. Stop it." John had gained control long enough to break the demon's hold on Sam. He dove to grab the gun from the table. When John turned back this time, the demon was back in control but Sam still took aim at him.

"You kill me, you kill Daddy."

"I know." Sam shot, hitting John in the leg. That was enough to make cause the demon's grip on Dean to break and both he and John hit the floor. Sam moved to his brother's side. "Dean? Dean, hey? Oh God, you've lost a lot of blood."

"Where's Dad?"

"He's right here. He's right here, Dean."

"Go check on him."

"Dean."

"Go check on him."

Sam did so. John lay motionless on the floor. "Sam: Dad? Dad?"

John's eyes bolted open. "Sammy! It's still alive. It's inside me, I can feel it. You shoot me. You shoot me! You shoot me in the heart, son!" Sam aimed the Colt at his father. "Do it now!"

"Sam, don't you do it. Don't you do it."

"You've gotta hurry! I can't hold onto it much longer! You shoot me, son! Shoot me! Son, I'm begging you! We can end this here and now! Sammy!"

"Sam, no."

"You do this! Sammy! Sam..."

The demon broke the stalemate as it left John's body in the form of an ink black cloud only to disappear through the floor. John looked at his youngest son accusingly.

~X~X~X~

Her phone rang. Sam. She didn't even pretend like she wasn't anxiously waiting from the boys. "Damn, am I glad to hear from you! How's it going?"

"Mae…I'm…"

Her heart sank. "What happened?"

"There was an accident. We're at the hospital."

"Are you—are you all okay?"

He was quiet too long. "Is he…is Dean…?"

"He's not dead but he's in bad shape."

"But he's alive?"

"Yeah."

"And you and your Dad?"

"We're both banged up but…okay."

Mae closed her eyes. "Okay, okay…so…what hospital? I can be there as soon as possible."

* * *

><p>AN-So that brings us back full circle! I'll pick back off where I left you at the beginning of Season 2 in Give Up the Ghost. Thank you so much for reading and I hope that you leave reviews and follow me over to my next installment.


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